{"id":445877,"date":"2026-05-17T07:08:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T07:08:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/445877\/"},"modified":"2026-05-17T07:08:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T07:08:11","slug":"man-united-have-been-close-to-the-top-for-so-long-is-their-current-approach-enough-to-change-that","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/445877\/","title":{"rendered":"Man United have been close to the top for so long. Is their current approach enough to change that?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Only fine margins separate Manchester United<\/a> from their Women\u2019s Super League rivals. Another season has brought valuable learning experiences for a team who were only reformed in 2018. A handful of high-quality signings ought to transform them into genuine title challengers.<\/p>\n

All of the above might be true, but the problem is it has also been true for multiple seasons. How do they finally close those fine margins?<\/p>\n

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\u201cBittersweet\u201d was how head coach Marc Skinner summed up the season after United\u2019s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea<\/a> at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the season.<\/p>\n

There have been enormous positives: a run to the quarter-finals of the Champions League in the club\u2019s first campaign in the competition proper (the same stage Chelsea reached), a long unbeaten run in the middle of the season that included eight consecutive wins and another domestic final, this time the Women\u2019s League Cup (which they lost 2-0 to Chelsea).<\/p>\n

But, Skinner said,\u00a0\u201cThe bittersweet is because we fell short at the end, and that\u2019s where I\u2019ve got to prepare and try with the resource we have to make sure we don\u2019t do that again\u201d.<\/p>\n

United\u2019s fourth-place finish, after only winning one of their final 10 games, means they will not compete in the Champions League next season. The club have firmly established themselves as WSL heavyweights alongside Chelsea, Arsenal<\/a> and newly-crowned champions Manchester City<\/a>, but the goal of closing the gap to those sides consistently \u2014 not only in occasional games \u2014 is proving elusive.<\/p>\n

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Their performance against Chelsea underlined the frustration. United matched their hosts\u2019 13 shots, with three on target to Chelsea\u2019s four, and had 28 touches in their opponents\u2019 box to Chelsea\u2019s 17. A Melvine Malard<\/a> strike from outside the box skimmed the roof of the net after a fast break, Ellen Wangerheim\u2019s header bounced off the woodwork and they failed to take advantage after Julia Zigiotti Olme<\/a> caught Keira Walsh<\/a> in possession.<\/p>\n

They are a side losing out, as Skinner said, on \u201cfine margins\u201d. Closing them is another matter.<\/p>\n

The call has often been for investment and that came up again on Saturday. \u201cIf we can add four or five players \u2014 some players will have to go, of course, in order to do that \u2014 but if we can do that, we can get closer,\u201d Skinner said.<\/p>\n

United\u2019s squad depth was pushed to the limit by their first proper European campaign, and will need further work.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe were one of the best teams in Europe until February, when we got those injuries,\u201d Skinner said. \u201cWe weren\u2019t designed to be able to do that.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hit us hard, but as you\u2019ve seen today, when we get the squad back, we can go toe-to-toe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The drop-off towards the end of United\u2019s season has coincided with a number of injuries. Elisabeth Terland<\/a>, Ella Toone<\/a>, Dominique Janssen<\/a>, Wangerheim and Leah Galton<\/a> are among those who have spent time on the sidelines \u2014 suggesting reinforcements would help. But Skinner was up front about the challenges of the market.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no doubt that other teams will spend more than us,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we can get it right, the reward will be greater because we\u2019re having to do it a certain way.\u201d<\/p>\n

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That way is identifying young players earlier in their journey, with the aim being to \u201csee their potential and grow that potential\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have players that have incredible talent, but unfortunately when you sign them younger, you have to develop them, so it takes a few seasons,\u201d the United head coach said \u2014 adding that having more time for training next season, without European competition, would hopefully help that development process.<\/p>\n

Many of those that United brought in as young prospects with little to no WSL experience have repaid that faith. Hinata Miyazawa<\/a> (signed from Japanese side Mynavi Sendai in 2023) and Jayde Riviere<\/a> (who signed her first professional deal with United the same year) are two strong examples, and both signed new long-term deals last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe buy players young, we grow them,\u201d Skinner said. \u201cAnna Sandberg<\/a> (22, who United signed from Swedish side BK Hacken in 2024) is a great example. She will be one of the best left-backs in the world. But we\u2019re having to grow her over a period of time and unfortunately that\u2019s what it takes. But those spaces next year will give us the opportunity to try and develop and try and get back into Europe next year.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Skinner is right that the market is changing. Naomi Girma<\/a> became the world\u2019s first million-dollar women\u2019s player with her move to Chelsea in January 2025, before Olivia Smith<\/a>\u2019s \u00a31million ($1.3m) move to Arsenal from Liverpool<\/a> surpassed that in the summer. Chelsea then signed Alyssa Thompson<\/a> for a club-record fee from Angel City in September 2025.<\/p>\n

United\u2019s ambitions are clear: to challenge for titles and play in the Champions League. The challenge is equally clear: the club are unlikely to spend as much as their peers with the same goals.<\/p>\n

If all goes to plan, and the young players they recruit flourish into title-winning footballers, their approach can pay off. The risk is that, in the meantime, domestic rivals with greater financial heft pull away and those behind them who are upping their investment, such as Tottenham Hotspur<\/a> and London City Lionesses, close in.<\/p>\n

Young, burgeoning talents also need to be complemented by proven professionals they can learn from, which is why holding onto those they invest in developing is so important for United. Securing Miyazawa, Riviere and Le Tissier to long-term deals is a positive sign in that sense.<\/p>\n

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Asked if the club\u2019s position in the transfer market was frustrating, Skinner said: \u201cI\u2019m long beyond frustration with it. I accept the challenge of it and I accept that I\u2019m responsible for trying to build a team that way and it\u2019s a challenge of management. If we can achieve it, it will be the greatest return.\u201d<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared in The Athletic<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Manchester United, Women’s Soccer<\/p>\n

2026 The Athletic Media Company<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Only fine margins separate Manchester United from their Women\u2019s Super League rivals. Another season has brought valuable learning…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":445878,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[208564,208565,4026,4488,4027,208558,208560,123826,208563,85,46,208557,208559,123824,208561,172,2617,3157,208556,208566,208562,28117,105,208555,4028],"class_list":["post-445877","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-alyssa-thompson","tag-anna-sandberg","tag-arsenal","tag-champions-league","tag-chelsea","tag-dominique-janssen","tag-elisabeth-terland","tag-ella-toone","tag-hinata-miyazawa","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-jayde-riviere","tag-julia-zigiotti-olme","tag-keira-walsh","tag-leah-galton","tag-liverpool","tag-manchester-city","tag-manchester-united","tag-marc-skinner","tag-melvine-malard","tag-naomi-girma","tag-olivia-smith","tag-sports","tag-the-champions-league","tag-tottenham-hotspur"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445877","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=445877"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445877\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/445878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=445877"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=445877"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=445877"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}