Eva Olid: ‘We cannot lose time’ after London City defeat | OneFootball

Anne Butzelaar, Women's Football Editor

Manchester United manager Eva Olid admitted her side “lost 50 minutes” during their 2-1 defeat to London City Lionesses, but insisted the gap between the two sides is “not that big” when United play with confidence.

Olid’s first Women’s Super League match in charge ended in disappointment as London City secured all three points in Bromley, with United struggling considerably during the opening stages of the contest.

The visitors failed to register a shot in the first half and found themselves under sustained pressure from Eder Maestre’s side, who capitalised on United’s mistakes in possession and caused repeated problems with their press.

United improved after the interval and eventually pulled a goal back through Simi Awujo in stoppage time, but it proved too little, too late.

Speaking after the defeat, Olid was particularly frustrated by her team’s first-half performance and felt a lack of belief prevented United from showing the style she has been attempting to implement since her arrival.

“I always say that it’s a process,” Olid said. “In three weeks, I try that the team believe that we can be a team that dominate with the ball and attack.

“I think it’s something more mental. The first half, we could feel like the players were not believing in having the ball.

“At half-time, I said, ‘Listen, this is not us.’ We need the ball to be ourselves, and of course, we could see a change in the second half.”

Olid felt United were significantly better after the break, when they became more willing to build through midfield and find players between the lines.

The Spaniard believes producing that performance from the opening whistle could have resulted in a very different contest.

“If we play 90 minutes like the second half, it will be another game,” she added.

“The basics in possession were wrong. We were giving them the balls to then attack. That is not what we want to be.

“In the second half, we were building through the middle, finding the free player, playing in the pockets between the lines. That is us. I could feel my team in the second half.

“But it’s my job to help them believe that we can always be the team of the second half. The first half, we need to forget it. That is not us.”

Olid: ‘We cannot lose time’

United’s improvement arrived late, with the visitors not registering their first attempt until the latter stages of the match.

Olid acknowledged London City deserved credit for the way they pressed and punished United during the first half, but believes her side demonstrated after the break that they are capable of competing.

“London City in the first half pressed well, took our mistakes and created chances,” she explained. “They did really well in the first half.

“But in the second half, I felt like we were in the match.”

Asked what she had learned about her players from her first WSL fixture in charge, Olid’s answer was simple.

“We cannot lose time,” she said. “From minute one, we need to be ourselves. We lost 50 minutes without doing anything, just defending. We don’t want that.”

Despite the difficult opening, Olid remained confident about United’s ability to compete with a London City squad containing the likes of Alexia Putellas, Delphine Cascarino and Grace Geyoro.

Asked how significant the gap currently is between the two teams, she rejected the suggestion that United are considerably behind their opponents.

“If we are with confidence, the gap is not that big,” Olid insisted. “If we are playing as in the second half, I don’t think the gap is that big.”

When subsequently asked whether United can compete against teams possessing London City’s level of individual quality, Olid responded simply: “Yes.”

Set pieces remain a concern

Another source of frustration was United’s defending from set pieces.

It was an area of weakness last season and proved costly again in Bromley, with London City finding joy from dead-ball situations.

Olid acknowledged it is something her side will need to address, although she pointed towards their defensive performances from set pieces during pre-season as evidence that improvement is possible.

“We don’t have a lot of tall players,” she admitted. “But I think in the friendlies, we have been defending really well the set plays.

“It is frustrating that we conceded two set plays. Never a manager is happy with that because I think they were simple mistakes that we committed. We need to work on that, of course.”

There were at least positives for Olid to take from the players introduced from the bench.

Monica Jusu Bah and Awujo both made an impact as United became increasingly threatening towards the end of the contest, with the latter eventually finding the back of the net in stoppage time.

Neither entered the opening weekend with significant preparation behind them. Jusu Bah had trained with her new teammates for just two days, while Awujo had only recently returned from injury.

“I think they changed the match,” Olid said.

“Monica didn’t start because she just trained two days with us, but I think she made the impact. And Simi came from an injury. She has just been training this week.

“Imagine just training a few days and the impact that she had. It’s something so positive. If she keeps training, she can be a key player for us.”

United now have the task of ensuring the improvement they showed after the break becomes the starting point rather than a response to falling behind.

For Olid, that begins with belief.

“Everyone needs to have confidence to receive the ball. Everyone has to show for the ball, and take that to go for the next match,” she said.

“That confidence that we need to play against top teams. We are a top team too, that can play with the ball, can create chances to score and can win matches against the best teams.”

The opening result may not have gone Olid’s way, but her message afterwards was clear: the Manchester United she saw during the opening stages in Bromley is not the team she wants to build.

The challenge now is ensuring the version that emerged after the break is the one that turns up from minute one.