Manchester United Women v Aston Villa Women match programme, Women's Super League, 10.11.24
BARCLAYS WOMEN’S SUPER LEAGUE • SUN 10 NOV 2024 • 6.45PM
MATT JOHNSON INTERVIEW
TEAM
REWIND TO... 2019 JUNIOR REDS
MANCHESTER
Co-chairmen Joel Glazer, Avram Glazer
Directors Bryan Glazer, Kevin Glazer, Edward Glazer, Darcie Glazer Kassewitz, Michael Edelson, Sir Alex Ferguson, David Gill CBE, Omar Berrada, Sir Dave Brailsford, Jean-Claude Blanc Secretary Rebecca Britain Honorary president Martin Edwards
MATCH PROGRAMME TEAM
Editor Charlie Ghagan Contributors Zoe Hodges, Helen Rowe-Willcocks, Mikey Partington, Sean Mullan, Steve Bartram, Jamie Spencer, Matthew Brown Photography Charlotte Tattersall, Ash Donelon, Getty Images, Alamy Thanks to Ellie Decrop, John Shiel, Paul Davies, Ian Nolan
Marc
SKINNER
Last Sunday’s game against Arsenal demonstrated our depth of quality in the squad, says the manager
AS HE WELCOMES VILLA TO LSV, MARC DISCUSSES
THE NEED FOR HIS REDS TO ADAPT FROM
GAME
TO GAME -- ABLY SUPPORTED BY A ROARING CROWD...
Welcome back to LSV!
It’s always great when we have back-to-back home games like this. We love playing here, we want to make it our fortress once again and if we keep building like we have since the opening game of the season then I’m confident that, together, we can do that.
Last weekend’s crowd for the Arsenal game was special, and just shows how far we’ve come. You fans are a massive part of everything we do and we want to be united – with a small ‘u’! – as one whole entity. You fans were the key difference for us last weekend. When we scored and hit that momentum, we could feel that electricity from the crowd. We have to maintain that. LSV is a hard place to play us. You fans get right behind us, the team responds to the fans, and we push together. In all our home games we need you just as much as we need each other. You are hugely important and we all feel that love and support each time we walk out.
We always look to start games a certain way but now we have a bench where, if we need to adapt, we can. There’s no set game-plan for each match but last weekend it was great to
see the substitutions making such an impact. Rachel creates chaos, Melvine in the box is deadly, Geyse creates an individualism, Simi came and added a physicality in midfield, and Jayde adds that explosivity down the side. The squad is hugely important. Everyone plays their part and it shows a togetherness in a team when they can adapt and help us adapt for what is needed in each game. Every fixture is a new challenge and the challenge is always different.
Today, once again, is going to be different. We need to bring full energy and be fully committed. Aston Villa have had some really close games, and they could have beaten Chelsea in that opening match of the season. We respect them but we also want to maximise our performance. That is our sole focus: to concentrate on what we can affect. They will play good football and they will be difficult to play against, so we have to ride our wave and concentrate on how we can hurt our opponent.
Enjoy the game.
GAME numbers Run the
A STAT-BASED PREVIEW OF TONIGHT’S WSL
Welcome back to Leigh Sports Village, exactly this many days on from our last WSL outing here – albeit at a later time, as tonight we play under the floodlights in the WSL for the first time this season. Against Arsenal last time out we were proud to set an attendance record here – see p10 for more on that, with another healthy (if not quite so big) crowd expected this evening. And much like last Sunday, our men’s team are also at home at a different time, so should you manage to make it back-to-back double MUFC matchdays, we salute you (especially if you’re able to squeeze in a pub roast en 7
route between Old Trafford and LSV!). Such dedicated support will be essential again as Marc Skinner’s Reds get set to host Robert de Pauw’s Villa who, despite their winless start to the WSL season, are a squad with an abundance of talent that will surely kick into gear soon. Let’s make sure it’s not today, Reds.
Among the talent in the Villa ranks are four familiar faces who will know a thing or two about the impact our boisterous home crowd can have at Leigh Sports Village. Kirsty Hanson, Adriana Leon, Ebony Salmon and Lucy Staniforth are all previously of United but will be hoping to do their bit to silence that red noise tonight, as they return to Leigh with the visitors. We’ll have to see how many take to the pitch back on their old manor but all four featured against Liverpool last 4
weekend, and you can guarantee that Skinner’s Reds will be looking to keep their influence on the contest to a minimum, as we welcome them back.
Old Trafford + LSV could make for a perfect Sunday...
Hanson leads the way with ex-Reds today, having played 90 times for United
We could be set for a scoring milestone this evening, as our next goal scored at Leigh Sports Village will be our 250th netted in a competitive home fixture. It is a tally that was given lift-off by a successful spot-kick from ex-captain Katie Zelem against Sheffield United in September 2018 and has since increased at a rapid rate over the last six years. Zelem’s penalty was the first of our 228 strikes here at Leigh Sports Village, while we’ve also found the target on 18 occasions across seven outings at Old Trafford. The total number also includes our efforts in a 3-0 home win over London Bees in February 2019 that was played at Hyde United’s Ewen Fields ground, due to LSV being used for rugby league (the cheek of it, right?!) on the same day. Exactly 20 of our 249 home goals to date have come across five previous encounters with tonight’s visitors, who, encouragingly, we have managed to get the better of on each of those occasions. That is a streak Skinner’s Reds will be keen to extend against De Pauw’s strong side this evening, as we seek to maintain our unbeaten start to ’24/25.
The rugby was here first, we know that really! But these posts will be lower tonight as we seek home goal no.250 under LSV’s floodlights
No defence has conceded fewer goals than United in the WSL, teeing up an intriguing battle with Villa’s Daly
Another player seeking a milestone tonight – and one the Reds will be out to keep quiet – is Rachel Daly. The Euro 2022 winner (left), who retired from international football earlier this year, has netted more times for Villa than any other player (49) since her arrival soon after that tournament success, and will be pursuing a landmark half-century here.
Alongside United’s Grace Clinton, Daly was one of six WSL players
on three league goals for the current campaign ahead of this weekend’s fixtures and, while the 32-year-old has scored in four of her five Villa games against United, the Reds are unbeaten across those matches and will be up for the challenge of facing one of the WSL’s premier forwards again this evening. No defence has conceded fewer goals than us in the WSL so far this term (two), teeing up an intriguing battle with Maya Le Tissier, Millie Turner and co if Daly is involved, as expected.
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GRACE’S LATEST AWARD
Clinton named Player of the Month, while Terland takes the best goal prize
Midfielder Grace Clinton has continued her fine start to the season by winning our October Player of the Month award, presented by Estee Lauder. The England international, who previously claimed September’s prize, has now won the supporters’ accolade in each of the first two months of the new campaign. It is just reward for what has been an impressive beginning to life in Marc Skinner’s side for Clinton, who made her United debut on the opening day of the term, following successful loan spells at Bristol City and Tottenham. Netting the opening goal in the third of our three October fixtures, a 1-1 draw at
Brighton, was the highlight of Grace’s latest award-winning month, while she also showed her quality in a solid substitute cameo against Liverpool and helped Skinner’s Reds to defeat her former club Spurs. Our no.8 earned 38 per cent of all fan
The players observe a minute’s silence ahead of last season’s home
HONOURING THOSE LOST
With this evening’s WSL fixture taking place on Remembrance Sunday, players, staff and supporters will have the opportunity ahead of kick-off to honour those to have lost their lives in conflicts across the world.
Both of tonight’s teams will also have the poppy symbol embroidered on their shirts, as a further mark of respect. Together, we will remember those who served and ensure that their sacrifices are not forgotten.
votes, which was enough to beat Elisabeth Terland (28%), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (17%) and Celin Bizet (16%). Terland did, however, claim our Goal of the Month prize, for the stunning volley to open her United account in the 3-0 home victory over Spurs.
AWAY TICKETS
Three matches on the road follow today, with Leicester first up at the King Power Stadium next Sunday (17 Nov). Tickets for that WSL fixture are on sale to all fans, while season ticket holders can now purchase entry for the League Cup tie away to Everton on Wed 20 Nov. The trip to Walton Hall Park was recently brought forward 48 hours, due to our previously postponed WSL visit to Chelsea being rearranged for Sun 24 Nov. Original tickets remain valid for that game at Kingsmeadow – for more info see tickets.manutd.com.
fixture on Remembrance Sunday
Grace was on target again in October
‘NORTH STAND, GIVE US A SONG...’
Taken: Sunday 3 November 2024, Leigh Sports Village
What’s the story? It was a sight to behold to look around the stadium just ahead of kick-off last Sunday, with four packed stands housing a record number of supporters for a United fixture here at LSV – 8,348 in total, narrowly beating the 8,312 crowd for the equivalent WSL meeting last season. Whether you were standing behind the goal in the North Stand (below), up the other end in the South Stand (right), or watching the action from a sideways perspective (far right), we can’t thank you enough for your support. And credit too must go to the Arsenal fans (inset), who helped contribute to a proper, noisy matchday atmosphere, which we all love to see here in Leigh.
UNITED TO DELIVER EXCELLENCE
MLT
THE SKIPPER KNOWS WE WEREN’T AT OUR BEST LAST SUNDAY, BUT OUR ABILITY TO DIG DEEP
SHOWS THE IMMENSE CHARACTER
WITHIN THIS SQUAD...
We are really pleased to be keeping our unbeaten streak going. Last weekend against Arsenal was a really tough game, which we expected, but we also learned a lot as a team. We showed great resilience as a whole squad and stuck together to keep pushing forwards. We know there is a lot we can improve on, which we have been working on in training this week, but when you can push through and still get a result when the game has not gone the way you wanted, that is really key. We have a lot more to give, we are still building each game, but what we are showing is that fight never leaves us. It was such a good atmosphere here last weekend as well, and a record attendance. The crowd really made a difference when we were pushing late on for an equaliser. You guys really helped us, keeping us going when we needed
that extra push. We are very grateful for you all. Leigh Sports Village is always a special place for us and we always feel you guys but last weekend you really helped us through to the end, so thank you.
Today’s opponents Aston Villa have not had the best start to the season but I don’t think their results show how they have performed. They have some fantastic players and it’ll be a tough challenge. They are still fighting for their first win of the season so we know they are going to be up for it. Let’s get that atmosphere going again!
Another strong defensive effort kept us in the game seven days ago
COLLEGE MATERIAL
HOW DOES PLAYING FOR SOME OF THE BIGGEST UNIVERSITIES IN THE USA EQUIP YOU FOR A PRO CAREER IN THE WSL? WE SIT DOWN WITH A PAIR OF REDS WHO HAVE BEEN THERE AND DONE IT...
Words: Mikey Partington
The clock has just ticked past 8am on a chilly October morning and we’re sat in the Jimmy Murphy Media Centre at the Reds’ Carrington base. It’s early, yes, but with effervescent pair Simi Awujo and Phallon Tullis-Joyce about to join us for a pre-training chat, how could we not have a spring in our step? A conversation about their highly encouraging start to 2024/25 would have been interesting enough, but on the agenda is a discussion that goes way back beyond the current season, or even their United careers: they are here to recall their development in football – or soccer, as we’re obliged to call it over the following five pages – for two major colleges in the USA.
Awujo’s arrival at United this summer, fresh from three years of representing the University of Southern California’s USC Trojans, saw her become the 11th player to join our women’s first team with previous of honing craft in the US collegiate system, following in the footsteps of University of Miami alumni Tullis-Joyce, plus fellow team-mates Leah Galton and Jayde Riviere.
Tobin Heath, Christen Press and Alessia Russo are among those on the roster of ex-Reds to have mixed Stateside soccer with studies, while six of our last seven transfer windows have included at least one incoming that has had the opportunity to pair sporting development with an off-pitch
education on the other side of the pond. It is certainly a growing connection and, similar to United’s proud Academy pathway to the senior side, it offers its budding young stars the quality of coaching, experience and support needed to work towards a career in the professional game, alongside the chance to earn a degree.
“The University of Southern California provided me with so many opportunities, from academic to athletic,” says Awujo as we begin our half-hour chat, the 21-year-old Canadian speaking just a few weeks after making her pro debut at Old Trafford. “I don’t think I’d be in this position if I didn’t go there. The coaches I’ve had have helped me out with everything and they’re always looking out for me.”
ABUNDANCE OF OPTIONS
According to the National College Scouting Association, there are more than 1,500 schools across the United States with women’s soccer teams, meaning there is an abundance of options to choose from for high-school players interested in taking up the sport at university. But, as Awujo’s United team-mate Tullis-Joyce explains, the most fertile ground for pursuing a long-term career in the game is not always the primary focus when picking where to go, even for those who have gone on to make it as a pro. “I was looking at universities that were big in marine biology so that I could pursue that path because I wanted to be a marine biologist and then eventually continue with my master’s and
Atlanta-born Awujo played for USA’s U17s before switching to Canada while at college
Phallon’s ability won her many plaudits in Miami
my doctorate degree,” our 28-year-old goalkeeper recalls of selecting a college to start at in 2014, seven years before Awujo’s move to California.
“I wasn’t necessarily around professional athletes, so I didn’t know if professional soccer was an option for me,” Phallon admits. “Then in my final year of college, I sat down with my academic advisor and said: ‘I think I’m going to keep going with this [playing soccer].’ He said: ‘Whoa! We’ve never talked about this before. Do you want to go pursue your doctorate first and then maybe try?’ I was like: ‘Oh, I don’t know if that’s how it works in professional sports!’ I ended up being really lucky getting an opportunity in France, and now I’m here.”
JEOPARDY IN THE DRAFT
While the college game can set players up for careers in the United States, here in England or even in France – as was the case for Tullis-Joyce who became a pro with Stade de Reims after leaving college in 2018 – it has also provided a direct route to professional contracts via the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Draft since 2013.
While the format is soon to be replaced by a free-agency system that allows players more freedom to choose where they make the step up after college, the draft was how Reds winger Galton
got her break in the senior game, having been selected by New Jersey club Sky Blue FC in 2016, at the end of her scholarship at Hofstra University in New York. Impressively, Leah was no.13 in the draft (although even that wasn’t as high as Rachel Daly, now of today’s opponents Aston Villa, who was the sixth pick that year, for Houston Dash).
“Getting drafted was great for me – it was make or break coming out of college,” Galton told us in 2020.
“If you don’t get drafted you don’t have anything –it would have killed my confidence if I didn’t make the cut – so that was a proud moment. Other than coming to United, going to America was the best decision of my career, purely because I went to college, I was training and playing football, but also going to school and getting a degree.”
Galton graduated with a qualification in exercise science and while Tullis-Joyce double majored in her passions of marine science and biology, Awujo has been balancing duties in United’s midfield by continuing her computer science and business course virtually over recent months.
“I’m like a part-time student, which is really nice,” Simi explains. “I thought I would still be there for another semester, but when a club like Manchester United comes knocking, you can’t say no. I’m just very grateful to my university for helping me
“I thought I’d still be there for another semester, but when a club like United comes knocking...”
through this process. I have a lot of people that are in my corner there, from my coach to our athletic director to my academic advisor. Everyone has just helped me figure out what the best plan is for me to be here and be a student.”
As someone who represented Canada at the 2023 Women’s World Cup while a student at USC, managing the demands of education with performing in top-level football is nothing new to Simi, who also spent the past summer in Paris with her national team at the Olympic Games. Her day-to-day life since arriving in Manchester has changed from the schedule that she was used to while studying in Los Angeles over the last three years, however. “Typically for us it was like a 7am meeting and then an 8am start for training,” says Awujo. “And then by 10am, you’re in the gym and you’re released for 11am, so then your first set of classes would be able to start by 11 and could end
like as late as nine. Once the season started, it was probably a bit more difficult because you could be traveling on a Wednesday and be out of your college campus and your city from Wednesday to Sunday, essentially, and not be back until Monday!”
It was during those Wednesday to Sundays that our new no.13 earned her place in the distinguished 2022 and 2023 All-Pac-12 first teams, as she was recognised by the coaches of the sides in the nationally renowned Pacific-12 Conference as a standout performer. Phallon also made a sizeable impression in her time on the field across five years in Miami, leaving in 2018 inside its programme’s top three for career wins, minutes logged and saves, to go along with a catalogue of memories for life.
“I just absolutely love the challenge of trying to be the best that you can be,” Phallon says. “I think that’s really the atmosphere that we had at Miami too, we were underdogs in the league. My standout memory was probably my senior game, the last game I had with my team. We played our rivals FSU [Florida State University], who went on to win the NCAA tournament, and we ended up winning. It was the most amount of people that we had watching, lots of my family members came and my mom had matching T-shirts made that said: ‘Phallon’s fans’. It was just a really great moment.”
Our lengthy chat with the two Reds at Carrington made for a fascinating start to the day before training
GIVING SOMETHING BACK
Getting the better of a historic rival also stands out when looking back for Simi, who had the opportunity to get a taste of facing one of USC’s biggest foes during her time in LA; fellow Californian school, Stanford University. “In our freshman year, we were down 2-0 to Stanford at half-time and we came back and won in overtime,” she recalls. “My best memory would either be that or probably another Stanford game, which was on my birthday – we beat them 2-1 and that was fun.
“Sadly, I missed my senior day, unlike Phallon!” she continues. “It was a few weeks ago, but my team-mates sent me a video, and everyone said nice messages. I saw it first thing in the morning, and I was absolutely bawling! That’s just another reason why I love my school, they’re forever a part of me.”
A strong, lasting connection with their respective colleges is something all of our current ex-collegiate players (see above) appear to have, including Jayde Riviere, who was fresh out of the University of Michigan when signing her first pro contract with United in January 2023. At the time, the full-back paid tribute to everything that Michigan had done to set her up for the professional game. “It goes unnoticed that you can go from college to pro,” our no.14 expressed, in her initial signing
MUW COLLEGE XI
ELEVEN REDS, PAST AND PRESENT, WITH THEIR UNI LINKS... SIMI WILL BE KEPT BUSY IN THIS LINE-UP!
GK Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Miami)
FB Jayde Riviere (Michigan) →
CB Diane Caldwell (Hofstra)
CB Amy James-Turner (Hofstra)
FB Leah Galton (Hofstra) →
MF Simi Awujo (Southern California)
FW Tobin Heath (North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
FW Adriana Leon (Notre Dame; Florida)
FW Christen Press (Stanford) →
FW Martha Thomas (North Carolina at Charlotte)
CF Alessia Russo (Nth Carolina at Chapel Hill) →
“I cling to what I learned at Miami – knowing you have to put in that effort and be a good team-mate”
interview. “I think it’s really important to get the education, so I’m glad I went to Michigan and I’m now glad I’m able to bring that success I learned from college and enter my first professional club here.”
Sat side-by-side, Phallon and Simi share Jayde’s sentiment and are keen to highlight the roles their respective colleges have played in them flourishing on the other side of the globe. “I think college definitely established some important stepping stones in my career,” says Tullis-Joyce. “I still try to cling to what I learned at Miami – on the field, the work ethic and knowing you have to put in that effort and work to be a good team-mate.”
“I just want to give back to the USC programme,” concludes Awujo, who has also been able to build up minutes in the early months of her first term as a Red. “I feel like it has given me so much and that’s only a fraction of how I could repay them, because of how much they have given to me.” ●
Letting your hair down is always important alongside the soccer and the studies, says Simi!
PLAY WITH STYLE
WHAT IS STYLE?
It’s Control. Creativity. And being prepared to cross that line. It’s the freedom to do your thing and play to your own whistle. It’s the ‘I’ in Individuality and the ‘You’ in UNITED.
www.remington.co.uk/manutd
A special shout-out to all these standing-section Reds in North Stand, who always do us proud!
MES SAGES
‘Happy 14th birthday to our football-mad daughter – we’re forever proud of you, Evie!’
● Happy birthday to Isabelle Gibbs, who is turning 12.
● Amelia Peel is a season ticket holder and she turned 15 on 8 November.
● Max is a season ticket holder and his favourite player is a Melvine Malard.
● Klara Jayne turned 16 on 8 November. She’s been a season ticket holder for two years. Love from Mum, Dad and Little Dee.
● Eleanor Nash is 16 on 25 November. Have a great birthday, and enjoy the game!
● ‘Happy birthday Erin BB’s – our super Manchester United Women fan!’
A belated happy birthday to Gabriella – Aoife’s biggest fan! She turned 16 on 30 October.
15 just last
This is Em’s third year as a season ticket holder and she’d like to thank her mum and auntie for taking her to the games!
Harper can’t wait to see United in action again soon.
Happy sixth birthday to Joseph, who is a massive fan. Love from Mum, Dad, Callum, Ava and Auntie Bec.
Bethany turned
month – Hannah B is her fave!
STAR-STRUCK STUDENTS
Sound advice is shared at the training ground on how to achieve goals in life
Young people enrolled on Manchester United Foundation’s post-16 education programmes enjoyed a day in the company of the United Women squad at Carrington recently.
The youngsters, all of whom are currently studying either a BTEC in Sport (delivered with Eccles Sixth Form College) or a Sport and Youth Leadership degree (delivered with Manchester Metropolitan University), gained insight and inspiration from the Reds, who were on hand to answer questions about their journeys in football.
Elisabeth Terland, Ella Toone, Gabby George and Jayde Riviere shared stories about some of their experiences in the game, both at Carrington and elsewhere, to encourage the students to continue pursuing their goals.
“It made me feel happy and inspired to meet the team,” said BTEC student, Phoebe. “It was great to see them in their training environment, I appreciated this opportunity. Listening to their stories helped me understand that anybody can achieve anything if they work hard and put their mind to it, whilst having the right attitude.”
Fellow college programme student Holly said: “The players helped me to learn about taking chances in making it to be a
footballer and to enjoy it along the way. This will inspire me to keep working hard after speaking to players who I look up to.”
Katie, from the Foundation’s university programme, added:
“Hearing the players speak about never giving up and embracing determination really resonated with me; it reminded me that perseverance is the most important trait to have, especially in sport, where challenges and setbacks are part of the journey.
“This experience will fuel my motivation and drive in my studies, particularly as I pursue coaching and leadership in sports. Their advice will stick with me as a reminder to work hard, stay passionate, and never lose sight of my goals. It was incredibly inspiring and a true honour.”
Visit mufoundation.org for more
Members of the squad pose with the students on a inspiring day
2024/25 POSTER RACHEL WILLIAMS
“Having that touchpoint into the fan base is so important...”
MATT JOHNSON
WE ENJOY A CHAT WITH UNITED’S INTERIM HEAD OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL MATT JOHNSON ABOUT OUR START TO THE SEASON, CONNECTING WITH SUPPORTERS, AND BRINGING THROUGH THE NEXT GENERATION OF REDS –– ON AND OFF THE PITCH...
Interview: Charlie Ghagan
You’re a few months into the role now. When you first got the job, Marc Skinner described you as a ‘super calm’ figure. Do you still feel that way a few months in? How are you enjoying it so far?
I’d say I’m still calm and thoroughly enjoying it. It’s been rewarding to see the positive progress of the team as we strive to improve each day.
For our readers who might not have a full understanding of your role, how would you describe being ‘head of women’s football’?
If I had to summarise it in one sentence, it is almost like ‘creating the conditions for success’. That’s ultimately what it is – and that’s both on and off the pitch. On the pitch there’s been very much three key priorities: recruit to win – so that’s the Academy, the young players coming through, using our scouting network to bring in top talent into the club. So how do we recruit and get the right squad? How do we then create the right training conditions to make individuals better and the team better? And then fundamentally creating a unique style of play that will get you three points. So those are the bits on the pitch. Off the pitch, it’s looking at how we grow the fan base, the commercial sustainability of women’s football, and how do we make sure that happens? They would be the two key focuses off the pitch, as well as all the governance and making sure everything’s done properly and efficiently.
From your perspective, how would you summarise the start to the season on the pitch?
Definitely an encouraging start. The thing that’s pleasing for me is that while we’ve not dominated every game, the way the new recruits have gelled, the team spirit, the willingness to work and play for the shirt and stick in games... it’s been magnificent. That’s what made them, for me, a really hard team to beat. The tenacity shown has been brilliant. →
Helping our young people tell their stories.
FOLLOW ALONG
Just two goals conceded in six games – that’s a good sign of a team that’s hard to beat... And we had five pre-season friendlies and we conceded one goal. So, if you look at it since they all came back in, they’ve had 11 games in total and conceded three goals. So that defence is solid.
Last weekend was another proud day – as close to a full house as we’ve ever seen at LSV, live on BBC, exciting talents from across the world playing for both teams... that’s what it’s all about, right? Yeah, and I don’t think we should underplay the fact we had 8,348 in attendance – a record crowd at LSV. All four stands were open which creates an amazing atmosphere. I think to do that while the game was live on the BBC, and with high viewers as Arsenal are always well supported too, it was a really good window of opportunity to sell the benefits of women’s football and what we’re doing at United.
The ambition is to fill Leigh week in, week out, and that game was more evidence of how we’re getting there for A-list games. The challenge is lifting those attendances a bit more for the other fixtures – such as this one v Villa, for example... I think that’s been our strategy. We want to entertain and that is about playing in front of full houses. So, the question is, firstly, can we do that regularly at LSV? We’ve got a really good, hardcore group of fans that will follow us everywhere. But it’s about trying to keep those fans that are coming to the big, A-class games – to keep their interest going throughout the season, and to make sure they’re attending, and recruiting new fans as well. We need to try and fill the stadium more regularly, that’s definitely an ambition.
“We need to try and fill the stadium more regularly, that’s definitely an ambition”
There are certain challenges around the transport and location, but LSV is fundamentally perfect for the team in a lot of ways, isn’t it... When you speak to external stakeholders, whether that’s people from other clubs or the Women’s Super League, or the FA or international coaches that come and watch, or agents – they all talk about how good Leigh is in terms of women’s football facilities. It’s the right size, it’s the right colour. It creates a really good atmosphere. The location is okay, it’s just the road has one way in and one way out, which causes bottlenecks, particularly when you’ve got 8,000 there.
You met with the MUW supporters’ club back in September at Old Trafford, which we understand was a really positive day, and something you were keen to be involved in... Yeah, definitely. I think having that touchpoint and
One of many training ground chats with Dan Ashworth and Marc Skinner, with the trio having vast experience within the women’s game
communication channel into the fan base is so important. I meet regularly on Teams every month with Debs [Henry], the chair of the women’s supporters’ club, and in partnership with [staff members within the club’s fan engagement team] Nicola Wellington and Rick McGagh, we’re doing a lot of work. For example, I attend all the fan zones now that the players don’t sign things after the game – instead three players go and meet 30 balloted fans. So we’ve been connected with the fans about that, and supporting them around the postponement of the Chelsea game also in recent weeks. I’m definitely trying to have that connection and communication tailored to the fans.
Going back to your previous role, you have strong links to our Academy, having overseen the Regional Talent Club as director of operations. It’s been great to see our young teams start the season so well too, hasn’t it... Yeah, it’s part of the United DNA to develop young players. We’re really proud, if you think about the men’s team, that since 1937 they’ve always had an Academy graduate in the matchday squad for every game. We’re really keen to emulate that in the women’s team – and we could probably go one better, as we’ve always had a graduate in the starting XI. If we want to keep that, we can’t keep relying on the Ella Toones and Millie Turners and Gabby Georges – we need fresh players coming through, so the development of young players is key. You’ve got to give young people that belief that the dream is possible, and they can make it through the system.
How have you found working alongside the club’s new sporting director, Dan Ashworth? Working with Dan has been excellent. He’s full of experience, knowledge – he’s been there, both in the
“We’ve always had a graduate in the starting XI –but we can’t keep relying on Ella, Millie and Gabby”
men’s and the women’s game before. So, working with him has been really good, picking his brains, getting his insight into how he operates and how we can make things better at United.
A similar question on the manager. Being manager of any United team is always going to bring a unique set of challenges and pressure – how have you found working with Marc? Marc is passionate about the women’s game and this club, and since I’ve come in he’s been very open, and he always wants to improve – be it the players, the staff, or himself. The thing to highlight for me around Marc is that he came in at a turbulent period, and he calmed it down. He was the first manager to get United Women into Europe, and then last season he was the first manager to win a major trophy, in the FA Cup. And he’s operating on a budget that is below that of Arsenal, City and Chelsea. So, I think sometimes people don’t appreciate the success he’s actually had in the managerial role. ●
Matt joined a round-table chat with the MUW supporters’ club at Old Trafford in September
UNITED
...are the team for me!
ESSEX-BASED RUKMINI PARBHAKAR (RIGHT) ON BONDING WITH FELLOW FANS, FOLLOWING UNITED THROUGH DIWALI, AND DANCING WITH THE OPPO!
I grew up supporting United in the ’90s – I was quite a tomboy as a kid, and I just loved talking about football. I’ll be honest, I didn’t realise United Women had a team for a long time. I found out through Twitter, and I thought, ‘oh, I can air my thoughts to people on here that will actually appreciate it!’ I watched the Lionesses win the Euros and after that I thought, I have to get to a United Women game. I live in Essex so I can only get to Manchester every so often but the good thing about the women’s game is you can get access to away tickets. So the first game I went to was at the Emirates, when Alessia Russo scored that amazing injury-time winner, and I was hooked from that moment onwards. It was unbelievable.
I love both the men’s and women’s teams now, so it’s hard to choose between them when they’re playing at the same time. I’m quite a religious person; I’m a Hindu and it’s been hard to get to as many games as usual lately. But now Diwali’s ended I’ll be going to Manchester and watching the men and women in the same weekend. I can’t wait.
The most memorable game I’ve seen was the Women’s FA Cup final last season – it was just an unreal day. I went to the final last year, and that was disappointing as I was staying in Manchester, meaning we travelled down on the coach and I was
so hyped up... but then we lost and everyone’s mood was right down on the floor. Compare that to this year when it was just brilliant. When Tooney got that goal just before half-time, I think we all knew we’d won it at that point. The concourse was bouncing. We ended up at Boxpark near Wembley afterwards and saw the Tottenham team going up into their private room – and Beth England came and danced with us at one point, which was awesome!
I have a great group of friends I’ve met through football. The United Women fan base is 100 per cent a community. It’s one of the main reasons I
Hodges
Where it all began for Ruk, down at the Emirates
“It can really change your mood when you see your friends, people you’ve met because of your love for United... it’s one of the main reasons I enjoy going”
enjoy going – it can really change your mood when you see your friends; people you’ve met because of your love for United. I drag my sister along with me now and we meet up with David, who was one of the rowdy ones at that very first game I went to! He doesn’t hold his opinions back but he’s a great character. Conner, who runs the WFC channel and Andy, who runs the Article fanzine – they’re great friends. You just connect as you’re all there for the same thing.
Millie Turner is my favourite Red because she’s a wonderful player and I love her personality. loved meeting the players at the end of the game. When I first started going, I thought it was really cool because you can’t do that in the men’s game. I’ve met a few of the players and every one’s been lovely... and to think they’d just run round for 90 minutes! It’s
a really nice thing to interact with the players but I do understand why they’ve had to stop it.
I remember one away game, Melvine Malard was walking around clapping the fans, and my friend David started doing her celebration, and she saw him and did it back. She’s a great character, I’m so glad we signed her! But one of the funniest things to happen at a game was when we were sat in the front row at Stamford Bridge and the whole United end was jeering Lauren James, especially David who was sat next to me. It took her only five minutes to score the first of her three goals that day! Lauren came right faces to celebrate and all I could hear the rest of the day from David was: ‘She should have been carded for that’. It made me chuckle because he should know: if you give it out you’ve got to be prepared to take it too!
Ruk sticks with the red as her matchday mates (including David) go green – but don’t expect any of them to be dressed like this tonight!
Tonight’s visitors:
ASTON VILLA
About our opponents...
Nickname: Villa; the Villans
Founded: 1973 (as Solihull FC)
Home stadiums: Bescot Stadium (11,300 capacity); Villa Park (42,918 capacity)
Last season: WSL 7th, Women’s FA Cup fourth round, League Cup semi-finals
Top scorer last season: Rachel Daly (16)
Best achievements: WSL 5th place 2022/23, Women’s Championship winners 2019/20
For the first time since 2021, Villa found themselves in need of a new manager following the departure of Carla Ward at the end of last season. An ‘extremely methodical and extensive’ search produced Robert de Pauw, who soon tasked himself with going beyond the club’s primary objective, to be a consistent top-six side. He wants to deliver their first ever major trophy and European football. It hasn’t been a smooth start, however. Villa remain one of three winless WSL sides across six league fixtures so far this season, currently in 10th.
Margins have been fine. Villa couldn’t have asked for a tougher opener than Chelsea away but made the champions work for a narrow 1-0 victory. De Pauw’s side edged possession and shots on target, and regretted an early Missy Bo Kearns miss and late saves from Blues keeper Hannah Hampton.
A week later against Tottenham at Villa Park, Rachel Daly looked like she’d won it in the 88th
minute after the Villans came from behind to lead 2-1, only to concede an even later equaliser deep into stoppage time. Villa were then holding Brighton at 2-2 until a late penalty nudged the Seagulls towards a 4-2 win, before Leicester goalkeeper Janina Leitzig thwarted them twice late on to cling to a 0-0 draw. Villa even took the lead away at Manchester City, before second-half
RECORD V THE REDS
Played: 11
Villa wins: 0
United wins: 9
Draws: 2
Villa goals: 5
United goals: 40
Left: team spirit and togetherness will be vital for Villa, who have managed just two points from their opening six WSL matches as they bid to improve on last term’s seventh-placed finish
LAST LINE-UP:
v LIVERPOOL (HOME, WSL), 03.11.24
SUBS USED: TAYLOR, STANIFORTH, MAYLING, DALI, GRANT
pressure told, resulting in a 2-1 loss. “We have to start by building a playing style, creating good habits, building a winning culture,” was De Pauw’s message when he first arrived. In searching for that style, the new boss opted for a change in formation against Liverpool last weekend, dispensing with the previous 4-3-3 and starting in a 3-4-3. It didn’t have the desired effect and Liverpool took a 2-0 lead into the break, at which point came a triple substitution and a shift into 4-4-2. The response was good and Gabi Nunes pulled one back almost immediately, although a much-improved performance and several chances couldn’t produce an equaliser.
De Pauw, who believes Villa to have played well but without killer instinct so far this season, will be hoping to see more of that second-half display here today, against opponents Villa have really struggled against since we first met in the Championship in 2018 (see panel, left).
HEAD COACH WSL LEGEND
Robert de Pauw has been a coach most of his life. “I have always worked from the sideline since I was 14,” he revealed while at former club Bayer Leverkusen. Now 43, this is the Dutchman’s first foray into English football, having previously spent two seasons in Germany and enjoying success in his homeland with FC Twente, whom he led to a league and League Cup double in 2021/22.
Jordan Nobbs made her WSL debut at 18 in 2011 for Arsenal, and recently surpassed the division’s all-time appearances record, which she has since upped to 196. The veteran midfielder is one of the standout players of her generation, winning three WSL titles and nine domestic cups with the Gunners, moving on to Villa two years ago.
STATEMENT SIGNING
The summer capture of Missy Bo Kearns was a sign of Villa’s ambition, recruiting Liverpool’s two-time Player of the Year when the clubs have been close to each other in the WSL table. The England U23 midfielder had played a major role in Liverpool’s gradual resurgence since becoming a first-team regular in 2020, with her potential to become a leader in the future being a standout quality.
Rewind to...
17 APRIL 2019 ● LEIGH SPORTS VILLAGE
The two meetings between United and Villa in our inaugural season are memorable for very different reasons... although it would be fair to say the Villans would prefer not to be reminded about either!
United’s 12-0 away win on the opening day of that Championship campaign remains a team record that will probably never be beaten, while seven months on Villa were our LSV opponents as the Reds sought to confirm promotion with three games to spare. With the game rescheduled from the original February date due to Villa’s FA Cup commitments, this midweek contest was squeezed into the schedule, leading to our smallest home crowd that season – but what a night the 1,401 in attendance were treated to.
Pictured above is the moment Villa keeper Sian Rodgers sees red for handling the ball outside her
area shortly into the second half, but the Reds were already out of sight by then, thanks to a bullet header from Millie Turner, an Alex Greenwood penalty, Jess Sigsworth’s composed finish and Ella Toone’s well-taken volley to make it 4-0. Despite the visitors being down to 10, they would only concede once more – Charlie Devlin (above, with Toone) slotting home on 73 minutes.
While the Reds have made big strides since then, the Villans are unrecognisable – they went unbeaten the next season to join us in the WSL, and not a single player remains at Villa from this April 2019 match, when all you could hear at full-time was a chorus of ‘we are going up!’ echoing around the stands of LSV.
Rodgers and midfielder Aoife Hurley can’t believe it as a handball proves costly for Villa
VILLA THRILLERS
Stats AT THE BACK
7
8
9
A CLOSER LOOK...
WOMEN’S SUPER LEAGUE
preview
TONIGHT’S LSV GAME ROUNDS OFF ANOTHER BUSY WSL WEEKEND...
By the time Marc Skinner’s side kick-off against visitors Aston Villa this evening, the remaining five fixtures taking place around the Women’s Super League will have been completed.
The weekend programme began on Friday with Brighton & Hove Albion’s trip to Arsenal, who were, of course, the visitors to Leigh Sports Village last weekend. The Reds levelled late to snatch a draw, preserving an unbeaten start to the season while also ending Gunners interim head coach Renee Slegers’ winning run.
While downhearted to see Melvine Malard’s header cancel out Alessia Russo’s opener for the visitors in front of a stadium record crowd for a WSL fixture, Slegers remained upbeat about her side’s overall display. “I’m very happy with the performance and the way the girls wanted to attack the game,” she said. “Sometimes it’s easy to have words and plans but then actually putting it into action, I think we did really, really well. I think we dominated big parts of the game, especially the start of the second half, we had strong momentum. Obviously, when you have momentum over such a big period of time against tough opposition, it would be really good to score a second goal so you close the game because you always know they’re going to get a chance or two and that’s what they did.”
City went into their meeting with Spurs with a one-point advantage over Chelsea in second
ACROSS THE WSL
meeting with Tottenham Hotspur with a one-point advantage over second-place Chelsea at the head of the league, albeit having played a game more than the reigning champions.
Malard’s equaliser kept the Reds in fourth spot, ahead of the fifth-placed Gunners going into this weekend’s fixtures. Table-topping Manchester City went into Friday night’s
Sonia Bompastor’s Blues – the only remaining side with a 100 per cent winning record – got tdoay’s action under way with a 12.30pm trip to Liverpool, a week after strolling to a 5-0 win over Everton on Merseyside. The Toffees, bottom of the pile the start of the day’s action, were hoping to bounce back from that mauling in today’s 2pm trip to fellow strugglers Crystal Palace, shortly before next-to-bottom West Ham United hosted mid-table Leicester City in Dagenham. Amid the preparations for tonight’s vital game at LSV, members of Marc Skinner’s staff will have an interest events at the Chigwell Construction Stadium, as the Reds will be making the trip to the East Midlands to face the Foxes in next weekend’s round of fixtures.
Amandine Miquel’s Leicester are away to West Ham today, ahead of hosting the Reds next time out
FIXTURES + RESULTS
Bizet Toone Clinton Terland Awujo Malard 1 Riviere Williams Geyse
ADDED-TIME QUIZ
What was the half-time score in United’s record win, and first-ever league game –the 12-0 win against today’s opponents, in 2019?
Ebony Salmon spent a loan spell with which other ‘United’ team during her one season with the Reds?
In which country did Adriana Leon help Canada win Olympic gold in 2021?
2. 1. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 9. 10.
Which season is the only since the Reds’ formation so far when the two sides haven’t met in the league?
Against which club did Kirsty Hanson score her final United goal, on the opening day of 2021/22?
What shirt number did future Villan Lucy Staniforth wear for the Reds: 27, 37 or 47?
After joining from Villa in 2023, Evie Rabjohn made her United debut in the League Cup against which fellow north-west club?
What was the identical score in both games between today’s teams when we met in the WSL last season? 8.
Nikita Parris recently got her first Brighton goal in their 4-2 win over Villa, but how many WSL strikes did she net for the Reds against Villa?
Villa-related posers – how many can you get right? ANSWERS: 1. 6-0; 2. Sheffield United; 3. 2019/20; 4. Japan; 5. Reading; 6. 37; 7. Everton; 8. 2-1 to United; 9. Three; 10. Ella Toone, Leah Galton, Millie Turner and Rachel Williams
And finally... name the four current Reds who have previously been on target v Villa.
