19 October 2023 , 10:11
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Man Utd boss Marc Skinner promised to bring his team back to the European stage after their painful Champions League qualifying exit.
United were knocked out by PSG on Wednesday night after a 3-1 defeat on the night saw them lose 4-2 on aggregate, meaning they won't play in the group stage of the competition. It was the maiden European campaign for the club, who reformed in 2018, after finishing second in the WSL last season.
But the defeat means Chelsea will be the only English team to grace the competition proper this year. Skinner was proud of his sides' performance in Paris, but they succumbed to goals from Lieke Martens (2) and Sandy Baltimore, despite Lisa Naalsund briefly offering hope with a classy finish.
But following the defeat the United boss issued a passionate warning that his side would return to Europe's premier competition in the future.
"All credit to our players," Skinner told MUTV. "We've come into an intimidating situation and we've been the better team. That just shows every team in Europe what they need to get used to over the next few years. We as a team are growing, going to where we want to be. And we are not going to let anyone stand in our way.
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"I just feel for our fans. They were magnificent, we quieted down their crowd because we dominated the game. I know we have the quality, we just have to keep proving it now. I want to thank them from the bottom of my heart. I'm going to promise that I will get the team to that position so that they can have big European nights."
During a second half fightback United's luck ran out. Leah Galton thought she had pulled a goal back not long after her team went 3-1 down.
United captain Katie Zelem battles for possession against PSGBut the goal was ruled out by the referee for a minor push, a decision later criticised by Skinner. Ella Toone also struck the woodwork late on, while Lucia Garcia was wrongly given offside when in a good position. Skinner has urged his team to learn from the experience, for when they return to the Champions League.
"We've got to be accountable for our mistakes," he added. "But if we do that we can grow again and again. Eventually they'll be no team in Europe that can touch us. We can go into Europe and can dominate in years to come. We're new to it. But we have to learn from the experiences we are having."
The Champions League format has been the subject of much debate over the last month with Juventus, Arsenal, last season's runners-up Wolfsburg and United all leaving the tournament at the qualifying stage, with reports suggesting UEFA are looking at tweaking the structure in 2025.
But for this season, United now have to focus solely on domestic matters with a trip to Everton looming on Sunday in the WSL. They have already dropped points against Arsenal and Leicester at home this in recent weeks and need a win to ignite their campaign.
Skinner's side only missed out on the title on the final day last season, which would have brought an automatic qualifying spot for the group stage. And the United manager wants his players to use that as motivational fuel for the rest of the year.
Skinner added: "I told the players (after the game) 'now you've got to get back into it' and to get back into it in our league is very difficult. We're going to push in every game now to try and finish at the top of that table. Because then you automatically qualify."