17 December 2023 , 14:56
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Manchester United boss Marc Skinner slammed his team's conviction and mentality in their 2-1 loss to Liverpool on Sunday as their title hopes suffered a major blow going into the Christmas break.
United raced into an early lead through Ella Toone as the Lioness found the back of the net in the third minute after Leah Galton smashed the post with her effort.
Yet, despite hogging possession and chances, the hosts failed to capitalise on their dominance and shortly after the half hour mark Liverpool restored parity as Millie Turner turned the ball into the back of her own net from Melissa Lawley's cross.
Liverpool looked nailed on to grab a second as the ball fell inside the six-yard box to Missy Bo Kearns, but Mary Earps was alert and did well to deny the effort.
But Taylor Hinds got the better of Earps as she converted beyond the United goalkeeper to give Liverpool a crucial lead with just 20 minutes remaining.
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United have cut themselves formidable beasts in the dying minutes of matches this season. But despite United boss Marc Skinner emptying his attacking ranks through Lucia Garcia, Geyse, Lisa Naalsund and veteran striker Rachel Williams, the host's were routinely thwarted by an organised Liverpool defence and a spirited performance from Teegan Micah in goal.
Liverpool very nearly accentuated the sense of suffering late into injury time as Earps whiffed a weak back pass from Turner but Leanne Kiernan's shot trickled fortunately back into the England No 1's arms.
Mary Earps reacts during the 2-1 loss to Liverpool (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)"We lost on the fundamentals of football," Skinner told BBC in his post-match assessment.
"Liverpool are not nice to play against and today we didn’t match them on that physicality," he added. "We were too passive int he final third and then once they went ahead, they shored up in the back.
"The reality is we got beaten by the fundamentals of football. You can play all the pretty football you want but if you do not want to head a ball in the box when we have the numbers to deal with it, it is not good enough for us."
Queried on the reasons behind the apparent drop off in mentality, Skinner rebuffed suggestions that fatigue or complacency were viable culprits.
"You can't blame fatigue. That's an excuse," he said. "It’s a desire to win the ball. It’s a desire to compete. Everyone wants to beat Manchester United. That's the reality and Liverpool have done that."
Taylor Hinds celebrates scoring Liverpool's game-winning goal against Manchester United (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)The result--Liverpool's first-ever WSL victory over United which places them level on points and fourth in the WSL table--comes as a telling reference point for the evolution of Liverpool this season under coach Matt Beard. Last season, Liverpool languished under United's attacking breadth in a difficult 6-0 loss that placed the club ever closer in a precarious relegation scrap.
The remnants of such a reality were difficult to find in Sunday's performance as a potential top-four gate crashing could feasibly be on the cards for the Reds, who have now gotten the better of both United and Arsenal this season.
"We put [last season's] game way past us," Hinds told BBC after the match. "It is a new season, a new team and you can see we have added so much value to the team."
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United have laboured to keep up with their previous campaign's heights. Across the 22-match campaign last season, United lost just two games and dropped a total of 10 points. Sunday's defeat to Liverpool marks United's second loss of the season.
"[The team] can have a break now but when they come back, they better be fired up because they have a big second half of the season coming up," Skinner said.
The Women's Super League returns to action the weekend of 17 January in which United will travel to London to take on reigning champions Chelsea.