Skinner: We fell short against Villa

The Reds were held by Aston Villa to a frustrating 0-0 draw in the Women’s Super League at the Banks's Stadium, Walsall.

“I thought we were the only team trying to win the game,” Skinner said. “But we fell short in that.

“We’ve done that a couple of times this season where we fell short against a deep block, and we’ve got to overcome that.”

He added: “If you want to go on and be top three and win things, you’ve got to score those moments. We need to be accountable for what we can control and what we can achieve.”

Despite his disappointment, Skinner appreciated the work that the Villans put in to earn a point against the Reds, who had previously won all six meetings between the clubs.

“All credit to Villa, they made it frustrating,” he said. “They celebrated at the end like it was a victory and that shows where we’re at.”

Skinner believes his side can take confidence from the approach sides are now taking when they come up against United Women and use this experience to grow.

“Teams now want to celebrate a draw against us,” he continued. “It just makes us even more strong to come back and do the right things to make sure we don’t feel like that again.

“Own it, grow from it, move on, [and] we’ll be a better team.”

With two matches left to play in the WSL this season, the Reds are in third place but are now just one point above Manchester City who have a game in hand.

Looking ahead to United Women’s final matches against West Ham United and Chelsea, Skinner laid out his targets.

“My expectations are for us to perform,” he said. “Give absolutely everything in both games, two tough games.

“I’m going to expect exactly what I expected in game one - give everything. With more knowledge, more learning, and more education, but give absolutely everything for this wonderful club, for our wonderful fans.”