Manchester City head coach Gareth Taylor is expecting a reaction from Chelsea when the two clubs contest an FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup semi-final at The Joie Stadium this evening.
The Cityzens defeated The Blues 1-0 at Kingsmeadow in the league last month and the two sides will now fight it out for a place in the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup final.
Manchester City boss Taylor spoke to the media in the pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon. He spoke about how his side will look to approach the challenge, as they gear up to face a ‘wounded animal’ in Chelsea.
“They’ll [Chelsea] be really bottling up the frustration of that result when we went down there,” Taylor said. “That’s normal and natural to expect that reaction. Of course, we need to control what we can control.
“Our focus has always been on ourselves, but we’ll always have an awareness of the opposition and the ways that we can use our game to exploit potential weakness. I’m expecting it to be a tough challenge, a semi-final is always going to be a tough fight.”
Taylor’s side have found themselves on a miraculously unforgiving winning streak. Manchester City will look to make it 13 straight wins with a victory over their Barclays Women’s Super League title rivals this evening. Despite what has been a vastly impressive commencement since the turn of the new year, Taylor insisted that his side will not be overcomplicating things against Chelsea.
He said “It’s about using what we have, using the run that we’ve been on, using our confidence, using the home support, using all of those factors. I think it’s going to be really key for us.”
As The Cityzens commenced their preparations for a busy week of cup action, it was announced that head coach Taylor has signed a new long-term contract with the club until summer 2027. Taylor spoke with great excitement about his new deal, stating that the agreement was a ‘no brainer’.
“I’m really excited about the future, and I’m really excited about what we’re doing as an organisation,” Taylor said. “We’ve got some real good solid support there now that is going to help us be the best versions of ourselves. For me, it was a no brainer; I think I’ve been really well supported. We’re really ambitious in terms of what we want to do.
“Of course, it’s tough. We’re in a really ever-changing outlook of the women’s game, and everyone is trying to be successful, everyone is trying to build on what they’ve already got and we are no different. [I’m] super-excited about what we’re doing, and super-excited about what the future brings.”
Taylor continued, expressing his gratitude towards the focus that this allows him to dial in on now that pen has been put to paper on his future at the club.
He said “It allows me to concentrate on the most important things. It was never in my mind that I wanted to be elsewhere. I was really happy to commit to longer at this club because I really like the direction that we’re moving in.
“What it has allowed me to do now is really get focused on the immediate future, and the slightly longer term future as well.”
Manchester City’s FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup semi-final against Chelsea kicks-off at 7.15pm this evening.