Manchester City boss Taylor praises Park after starring in derby win | OneFootball

Manchester City head coach Gareth Taylor praised midfielder Jess Park after she played a starring role in her side’s 3-1 victory against Manchester United at The Etihad Stadium this afternoon.

The 22-year-old netted an impressive brace while her excellent pass created The Cityzens’ third goal which was converted by forward Khadija Shaw.

When speaking to the media after the match, Taylor admitted that he was impressed with Park’s performance and said that she produced exactly what was asked of her.

“Yeah, really good,” Taylor said. “The cherry on the cake we were looking for with Jess was goals and assists and she gave us that today, on a big stage. Her performance was good with and without the ball, she drives really well and gives us a lot of energy and a lot of quality. The assist for Bunny [Shaw] was pretty special too.

“There’s still a lot for her to do but Jess has stepped into the opportunity really well. When you think about how patient she has had to be, she has done really well in that space.”

Manchester City struggled to get control of the game prior to Park’s opener in the 37th minute, however, once they were in-front, they never looked back. Taylor was pleased with how his side built their three-goal lead either side of the half-time interval.

He said “I felt like we started the game quite well and then just created our own issues by allowing United five minutes of pressure and a few half-attempts. Then, we go up the other end and within the first couple of pressures we make on their back-four, we end up with two goals and just before half-time, we get that two-goal cushion. That is always a bit of a dodgy scoreline, but to come out and score that goal that we did was great.”

Manchester City are back in Barclays Women’s Super League action next Saturday when they travel to Prenton Park to face Liverpool.