Manchester United head coach Marc Skinner has admitted that this weekend’s Manchester derby is huge for both clubs.
The Red Devils are likely to have to win the game to keep their hopes of securing the Barclays Women’s Super League title alive. Meanwhile, anything other than three points for Manchester City is likely to end their chances of securing qualification for next season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League.
When speaking in the pre-match press conference, Manchester United boss Skinner did not play down the enormity of the game.
“It’s huge,” Skinner said. “Manchester City want to win it, we want to win it, both sets of fans want to win it and the players want to win it.
“For us, it’s huge. We know how big it is but the reality is that we have just played a big game, so we are going to play it with the same mindset that we play any game.
“It’s a great penultimate weekend for women’s football and that’s as the purist in me and as a person that loves women’s football. It’s a massive weekend and it can be sold like that.
“For us as a team, we should absolutely focus on what we can control in the game. We know that Manchester City are a very good team. It’s a heavyweight contest, one big punch and the other one can be knocked out, so we have to try and land those punches if we can.
“It’s a sell-out at the Leigh Sports Village and our fans have made a massive difference for us this year. Around it can be hyped but we have to focus on what we can achieve.”
Manchester City have the Barclays Women’s Super League’s second-highest goalscorer in their ranks in Khadija Shaw. Skinner went on to say that cutting out the supply line will be key to keeping the Jamaican international quiet.
He said “I remember Jonas (Eidevall) speaking about them being a one-player team then Bunny Shaw pops up after four minutes and scores.
“She’s a great player and we obviously have many too. There’s always a game plan, there’s always an adaptation but I felt that our defenders the other day (against Chelsea) were excellent as a collective in trying to stop Sam (Kerr), barring a moment.
“Great players have moments, our players have moments but as a collective back-four and offensive unit in-front, we can do our very best. If we can stop her supply from Lauren (Hemp) and Chloe (Kelly), then she doesn’t have the fire power to be able to use it.
“We all appreciate good players and Bunny is one that we will have to try and keep quiet on Sunday. It won’t be easy but we will try our very best.”
Manchester United’s Barclays Women’s Super League fixture against Manchester City kicks-off at 6.45pm on Sunday evening.