‘There’s pressure on the game’ – Conti Cup tie a ‘must-win’ for Manchester United says Skinner | OneFootball

After an emphatic 5-0 win against Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Saturday, Manchester United turn their focus to the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup this evening as they look to get their qualification hopes back on track against a well-drilled Everton team.

Marc Skinner’s side are yet to win an FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup game during the 2022/2023 campaign but The Red Devils will hope to change that tonight when they play host to Brian Sørensen’s Everton side. Manchester United have just two points on the board and they must win their last two group games against Everton and Sheffield United to have any chance of reaching the last-eight.

After tonight’s game, Manchester United make the short journey to the Etihad Stadium as Manchester City play host to the first Manchester derby of the season. With Sunday in mind, Skinner will need to use the depth of his squad well in order to get the best out of both fixtures.

“For me, rotation doesn’t mean putting other people into the game,” said Skinner when speaking in the pre-match press conference. “For me, I’m putting international players into games and putting in players that are hungry and that are training well and because everybody is training well, it’s the hardest part of my job to pick this team.

“For me, it’ll be a balance point but I’ve got nothing but admiration and praise for the players that are coming in. I respect everything they’re going to do within this game and there will be rotation but not for the sake of it, it will be for the quality of it.”

Skinner realises the importance of both this evening’s FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup game and the Manchester derby and he believes that his squad are better prepared for the bigger occasions this season.

He said “There’s pressure on the game rather than it just existing. Even if we win these games in the Conti Cup against Everton and Sheffield United, we’re still not guaranteed (qualification) because of the result against Villa.”

Given the format of the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup group stage, only one runner-up will progress through to the quarter-finals. Skinner’s side will need to put everything into their remaining group games and treat them as cup finals in their own right. Manchester United can only accumulate a maximum of eight points. That tally may or may not be enough for qualification but The Red Devils need to win their next two group games to give themselves any kind of chance.

Skinner said that he has been impressed with Everton this season, despite their slightly underwhelming league position and he knows that tonight’s game will be a real test for whichever team he puts out on the pitch. The Manchester United boss wants to see energy from his side and a level of patience when required.

“Everton have the quality to possess the ball for longer periods so we want to try and win the ball high and win the ball back early,” Skinner said. “For us, it’s about staying compact, allowing the opponents to have the ball and then knowing when to jump and when to press.

“I think it’s the way you present your team. There’s a method behind this high speed and high energy. We do get impatient sometimes when we don’t have the ball because we want the ball. For us, it’s about being high energy and trying to impact our game on a very good Everton team. If we do that, I’ll be happy regardless because that will give us the best chance of winning the game.”

Manchester United’s FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup fixture against Everton is scheduled to kick-off at 7pm. Tickets remain available and can be purchased by clicking here.