Marc Skinner’s United revival rolls up for FA Cup clash with injury-hit City | OneFootball

Rewind one year, to when Manchester City were top of the Women’s Super League and Manchester United were trundling towards a fifth-placed finish, at a time when Marc Skinner’s contract was soon ending. If you were told then that one of the Manchester women’s teams would have changed their manager by the time a derby came around in April 2025, very few people would have predicted it to be City.

Since then, Skinner has signed new contracts twice while Gareth Taylor was sacked in March and it is Manchester City who find themselves languishing seven points adrift of the European places. These two rivals on seemingly opposite trajectories meet on Sunday in a Women’s FA Cup semi-final.

How did Skinner’s fortunes turn around from fans calling for him to be sacked last season to being the longest-serving current WSL manager? A key moment came when beating Chelsea in last season’s FA Cup semi-finals and he was given a one-year contract extension; it is understood that was signed before they went on to win the final, even though it was announced afterwards.

The club had decided to back Skinner regardless of the result at Wembley last May. Specific results are understood to have helped make the club’s mind up this season, too, not least January’s confidence-boosting 4-2 WSL victory over City at the Etihad Stadium, a timely win just as Skinner was entering the final six months of his deal. More widely, though, the club assessed a much steadier season overall, with two league defeats. They have the best defensive record in the division with nine goals conceded in 18 games.

Despite that, Skinner still has some work to do to win over a significant section of the United fanbase and some may never truly warm to him, but there has been a unity for the team on the pitch this term that has been admired by coaches elsewhere. The decision to name Maya Le Tissier as the new captain, at the age of 22, has proven to be a masterstroke.

They have started games strongly, scoring 63.9% of their WSL goals in the first half this season, helping them take command of matches. They are yet to concede a goal in the first 15 minutes of a league game.

They are not an especially possession-based team, ranking seventh in the WSL for passes completed and eighth for passing accuracy, but their work rate and organisation off the ball is top-class, helping them keep a league-best of 12 clean sheets.

“We’ve been able to get consistency again this year, and hunger,” Skinner said on Friday. “Last year, maybe within the success of the previous season, we lost the hunger we needed. We’ve adapted the playing squad, we’ve added more physicality, and I believe that’s added to the quality. But there’s still so much more to come.”

It will undoubtedly be a big end to the season, with league matches against Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal. For the semi-final, they will be boosted by the news that Manchester City will be without the forwards Vivianne Miedema and Khadija Shaw because of injury.

The hosts’ interim manager, Nick Cushing, praised Skinner, pointing out their defensive strengths. “I have huge respect for Marc. He’s a top-level coach. I expect a really difficult game.”

For now, Skinner is enjoying a streak of positivity that has been relatively rare during his four-season tenure. Reach Wembley again and that will continue handsomely, but as Taylor’s change in fortunes in the past 12 months can demonstrate, things can change very quickly in football.

Header image: [Photograph: Conor Molloy/ProSports/Shutterstock]