Williams: We want to be back next year

Williams, a scorer as we lifted the trophy for the first time last season in a 4-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, came off the bench in this year's showdown between Chelsea and United, with the London outfit leading by a single goal when she entered the fray with fewer than 10 minutes to play.

Sandy Baltimore had given the Blues the advantage with a penalty on the stroke of half-time, but the fightback was not to be for Marc Skinner's side, as Sonia Bompastor's team scored twice more in the closing stages; Catarina Macario heading home before Baltimore struck another.

United, of course, had tasted success in the competition last term having fallen in the final in 2023 - also against Chelsea.

The Reds have shown a relentless streak in this tournament to make it to three finals and as many years, and Williams has assured fans that she and her team-mates will be looking to do that once again in the 2025/26 season.

"We’ve worked so hard this season and just to be here in the final, we’re going to enjoy the occasion," said Williams, in a post-match interview with MUTV.

"But we came here with a plan and I felt like we stayed in the game, we executed what the staff had been teaching us all week. You give a penalty away, it’s always going to be an uphill battle.

"We’ve given everything today, we made changes, we threw absolutely everything and the kitchen sink at Chelsea and today was their day.

"I can only say, like I said last year, we’ll try and be back again next year, maybe we’ll get our hands back on the cup."

It's heartache to lose out at this stage, of course, but Rachel still feels it's been a season to be proud of for the Reds.

"I can’t fault the girls’ efforts today, everyone has absolutely put in the biggest graft and that’s been our season. We’ve got such a team spirit and togetherness. We got Champions League [qualification for next season] we’ve had a great season, we're going to World Sevens from here, and for us, we want to give everything we can.

"We’ve gave back to the fans again, another day out for them, so I’m just so proud of the team and the girls."

Rachel also wished to pay personal thanks to United's medical staff, who helped her to recover in time to feature at Wembley, having suffered an injury in the lead-up to last month's WSL game against Chelsea.

"Jayde [Riviere] snapped my ligament in training, the Monday before the Chelsea home game," she explained. "The scan came back that I’d snapped my ligament and to our medics, I was like: ‘You’ve got four weeks to get me ready for the final!’

"Honestly, our medical team, everyone has been absolutely brilliant because I didn’t want to miss a day like today.

"The minutes that I got, I can come and make an impact and help the team, that’s what we aim to do, and I felt like I’ve done that today, I can’t thank our medical team enough, they’ve been absolutely brilliant."