Skinner: I couldn't be prouder after late win

United kicked off on the front foot and came close to taking the lead just minutes into the game, but a neat save from Courtney Brosnan denied Melvine Malard from opening the scoring. Elisabeth Terland’s 15th goal of the season did put the Reds 1-0 up in the 39th minute though, establishing a well-deserved lead.

Everton struggled for much of the match to gain any momentum or control of the ball, however, with 15 minutes to play, they found a new lease of life. Inma Gabarro headed home to equalise as the clock struck 90, before Malard restored our advantage with a dramatic winner in stoppage time.

Scroll down to read what Marc said about the result, his team getting back to winning ways and the upcoming fixtures, in his post-match press conference…

BACK TO WINNING WAYS

Marc described Saturday’s victory as “epic” and credits his players for pushing through a tough spell.

“I’d say it’s an epic win because if I took you through the week, we’ve lost the cup final which is devastating, everyone feels that.

“We then go away to West Ham midweek, don’t quite get over the line, get back at four o’clock on the Thursday morning, get up, come in to do an hour's training session, because that’s all we can do with the squad size we have.”

With a quick turnaround between games, Skinner paid tribute to his players for their resilient performance against an in-from Everton side, who were chasing their fifth consecutive league win.

“To be leading and to go [back to 1-1] late, which I thought was a good goal by Everton, but [the] very little they had in the game... and then to come and win it in the end, I think it’s an epic win with fantastic credit to the players.”

SUPPLY TO THE FORWARD LINE

Skinner spoke openly about the importance of supplying his forward line ahead of Everton's visit and, in his post-match press conference, he acknowledged the side had improved in the attacking third following a disappointing stalemate away at West Ham in midweek.

The boss reserved particular praise for Malard, after the French forward's stoppage-time winner capped a positive performance.

“I thought Mel was really lively down the side, I thought the right-back had a hard time against her,” he said. 

Despite a stronger attacking performance, Skinner admits his side could be more efficient moving forwards but notes the context of our taxing last week or so.

“Look, we could have been cleaner in some moments, we needed to keep it really simple and [we] hoped that [in] the second half, [we could start] creating the clear-cut chances we wanted to [create].

“Honestly, I can’t be prouder of them, just because you have to add context into performance. We all want to score, we all want to create, but actually when they’re running as hard as they are against a fresh team, to do what they’ve done is fantastic.”

IMPACT OF SUBSTITUES

The stoppage-time period saw the introduction of 16-year-old Layla Drury, who brought a new energy to the field of play, winning the corner which Malard headed home from.

When asked about her potential, Marc stated she is in the correct place to continue her growth.

“What I loved about her when she came on was she took the ball under control and ran at the opponent. She took it by the horns, ran and created the moment where we scored from, so I’m really impressed with her.

“We love in the country to build players up and then destroy them. So for me, she’s at the right place to grow properly and look forward to all the things she can achieve.

“She can be a fantastic player,” continued Marc. “However, she must do it properly and make sure she doesn’t skip any steps.”

UPCOMING MATCHES

Our next two matches will be held at the Theatre of Dreams as we host German champions Bayern Munich in the first leg of our UEFA Champions League quarter-final, before next Sunday's tasty WSL encounter with derby rivals Manchester City. 

“These are two great challenges”, said Marc. “The City game in between [the two legs against Bayern], of course, as well at Old Trafford.

“Great, great challenges and something my team will look forward to.”

After Julia Zigiotti picked up her fifth yellow card of the campaign against Everton, she will be unavailable for selection next Sunday against City. In response to this, Marc hopes some players will soon return to action, including Hinata Miyazawa, who won the Asian Cup with Japan before United's game kicked off on Saturday.

“Dom [Janssen] has a niggle, so I don’t know whether she’ll be back – I don’t know yet. And then we have Ellen [Wangerheim], who has a response in her shin from just the amount of games she’s had. So hopefully a couple of weeks [before she is back].

“Hopefully we’ll welcome Jayde [Riviere] back on Wednesday, and hopefully Hini [Miyazawa], congratulations to her for winning the Asian Cup. Hopefully we can welcome her back into the squad [ahead of the games] coming up.”

SIMI AWUJO

One player who seemed at the heart of all things good United did on Saturday was Simi Awujo. The 22-year-old Canada international signed for the Reds in August 2024 and has since undergone a transition from playing college football in the United States – something which Marc acknowledged.

“I think she deserves a lot of credit today. The one thing with Simi that we forget is that she came to us straight from college. If you’ve ever watched college football in America, it’s a totally different game, and so she’s just learning.

“There’s going to be bumps in the road and I think today she did herself some great justice.”

Marc notes that goals and assists are next to come from the midfielder who he believes has the ability to “get past any midfielder” in the league.