‘A performance that needed to happen’ – Skinner proud of Manchester United’s efforts against Chelsea | OneFootball

Manchester United head coach Marc Skinner said that he was proud of his side’s performance despite falling to a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea at Kingsmeadow on Sunday afternoon.

Guro Reiten netted the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the first half. The Red Devils were inches away from claiming a share of the spoils at the death when Melvine Malard hit the bar. The defeat brought an end to Manchester United’s unbeaten start to the season.

When speaking to the media after the match, Manchester United boss Skinner stated that he was proud of his players despite the defeat.

“We said we would give everything from the off and the players have given everything,” Skinner said. “Both teams had to play the conditions, but the pride I feel for the team and their commitment to what we’re doing and know we can do, I’m proud of their performance.

“It was a performance that needed to happen.”

Skinner favoured veteran forward Rachel Williams to lead his attacking line in what he acknowledged as a very physical game.

He stated “If you’ve played against Millie [Bright] and Nathalie [Björn], they’re very physical. We knew the wind was going to be a factor, so if you can’t hold the ball or when you have to be deep, then you can’t hold your territory on the pitch. It is literally about Rachel [Williams]. She’s one of the best and she can’t be bullied with that physicality.”

When asked about his defensive strategy, Skinner emphasised the importance of knowing where to allow the opponent to have possession and stopping them from playing to their strengths.

He said “It’s not a defensive mentality, but you have to have a defensive mentality playing against the top teams. Games are too much now for you to just go and attack and attack and attack. In the last few games, we’ve been able to do that.

“You can’t open up against Chelsea and go all out attack because they can hurt you. If you rewind to the last game of last season, the difference and the distance has decreased massively.

“These games are always tight; Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, they’re always tight. We will review it, but the reality was that in that game, we had relative control.”

Skinner went on to discuss the title race. He stated that Manchester United’s focus is on accruing points, finishing as high up the table as possible and winning as many games as they can, especially in the period before Christmas.

He said “All we can do is try to finish as high on the table as we possibly can, looking for those Champions League spaces and then the reality is to just try and win as many games as you possibly can.

“Three [games] after the international break, before Christmas, our job is to try and win all of those games.”

Manchester United return to action following the international break when play host to Liverpool on Sunday 8 December 2024.