‘We’ve got to score more’ – Manchester United could have been more ruthless says Skinner | OneFootball

Manchester United head coach Marc Skinner says that his side could have been more ruthless as they defeated Sunderland 2-1 at The Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground yesterday.

A Nikita Parris double helped The Red Devils to see-off the threat of the second tier Lady Black Cats and qualify for the fifth round of this season’s Vitality Women’s FA Cup.

Manchester United registered 21 shots on goal but the result was very much still in the balance until the final whistle. When speaking to FAWSL Full-Time after the match, head coach Skinner said that his side needed to be more ruthless in the final third.

“We dominated the 90 minutes,” Skinner said. “We tried to manipulate the opponent into spaces that we wanted to move in and we did, we created chances but we’ve got to score more.

“For me today, it is about concentration, there were moments where it was a tap in and we were trying to whack it and that happens when you are not focused in that final third.

“All I said at half-time was that we’re getting into spaces, manipulating the opponent and now, finish and be ruthless but second half we weren’t as ruthless as we needed to be as well.”

The performance of forward Parris was one of the big positives for Manchester United with the player producing two clinical finishes inside the box. Skinner is pleased with what the England international brings to the side.

He said “They were very instinctive finishes, in tight areas, they were very quick. She showed her ability to shift her hips and hit it.

“It is slowly coming back to Nikita. She has always had that but hasn’t played a lot at Arsenal, now we are starting to get a run of games where she’s making that happen. Her runs are excellent, her timing is excellent but it’s those tight quick feet and then that short back lift that takes the keeper by surprise and that’s exactly why we signed her. She is a variant of forward for us to be able to take moments like that where the pitch is bobbling up and you have to hit it, she did.”

Manchester United will learn of their Vitality Women’s FA Cup fifth round opponents when the draw takes place this evening.