Manchester United have ‘blueprint’ but Chelsea still WSL team to beat

M arc Skinner has, of course, watched back last Sunday’s Continental League Cup final defeat of Chelsea by Arsenal. “There are parts of that performance from Arsenal that you would take and say that’s an excellent way of playing against Chelsea, but we’ve also got different players and we have to do it our way as well,” the Manchester United manager says before a game that many view as the ultimate test of his side’s title credentials.

Skinner’s side sit top of the Women’s Super League, one point clear of Chelsea but having played a game more. Chelsea have won three consecutive league titles, mastering the art of finding a way to win regardless of form. They are the team to beat and United have yet to take a single point off them since joining the WSL in 2019-20.

However, despite being in contention for a fourth title in four years, Chelsea have not been their rampant best and last Sunday their steeliness dissolved against Arsenal in the final, when the Gunners came from behind to secure a comprehensive 3-1 defeat of Emma Hayes’s team.

“It was definitely a blueprint that worked,” Skinner says of Arsenal’s performance. “I thought Arsenal were very good in that game and I know that Emma wasn’t happy, but they had some good moments, too.”

On the face of it Chelsea’s collapse against Arsenal could be a blip in an otherwise impressive season that could yet see them finish with more silverware, yet there are signs that all is not perfect. Hayes did not speak to the press before the showdown with United at Kingsmeadow on Sunday, with the general manager, Paul Green, filling in as she recovers from a viral illness.

Hayes is a smooth operator when it comes to dealings with the media, delivering her thoughts in a compelling and