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Manchester United Women won their first major honour on Sunday, beating a lacklustre Tottenham Hotspur side 4-0 in the FA Cup final at Wembley.
It is the first time a side has won their maiden FA Cup trophy since Manchester City achieved the feat in 2017 and, as such, the result is a milestone for a United team who were only reformed in 2018.
Yet questions should still be asked about the long-term ambitions of the team.
The game represented an opportunity for United to rescue their season, with manager Marc Skinner in the same position as Erik ten Hag, his counterpart on the men’s side. After a disappointing league campaign, the FA Cup final offered a significant distraction from the fact they are on course for their lowest-ever points tally in the top flight.
Even so, there has never been a sense that Skinner’s job is under threat. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, United offered him a new deal even before they reached the final, although the two parties are yet to reach an agreement.
The apparent indifference to United’s actual form has been concerning, with new leadership from INEOS having commenced in February. New co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe forwent a day out at Wembley in favour of watching the men’s side lose 1-0 to Arsenal at Old Trafford. He was present three weeks prior when United’s men had played in the semi-final of the equivalent competition.
Avram Grant was booed when shown on the Wembley screens (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Instead, Roger Bell (chief financial officer) and Tom Crotty (director for corporate affairs and communications) were in attendance on behalf of INEOS as well as Avram Glazer, the United executive co-chairman, who was booed by fans when he was shown on the big screen ahead of the trophy lift.
It was childhood Manchester United fan Ella Toone who scored a spectacular opener at the end of a largely dull first half. Toone had played in United’s academy from the age of eight to 14 before being forced to move first to Blackburn Rovers and then Manchester City as she approached senior football age.
Ella Toone puts Manchester United 1-0 up at Wembley!
They take a deserved lead into half-time against Tottenham…#WomensFACup pic.twitter.com/F45DdqWxRN
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) May 12, 2024
Her impeccable record at Wembley continued, scoring her fourth goal in seven appearances at the ground for United and England and winning a third trophy to go with her European Championship and Finalissima medals.
ELLA TOONE.
Wow.#BBCFootball #WomensFACup pic.twitter.com/bUWadEz2iw
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) May 12, 2024
The reaction of long-term United players such as captain Katie Zelem showed what a watershed moment this was for the club, while Nikita Parris picked up her third FA Cup winners’ medal having turned down a £1million ($1.25m) move to North Carolina Courage to be available for this match. Parris came on in the 58th minute with United 3-0 up.
But Ratcliffe’s absence highlights a concern about his lack of focus on the women’s team. INEOS has notably never set up a full women’s cycling team to match its big-budget men’s outfit, while Nice, the French club it also owns, only compete in the second tier of women’s football in the country.
United look set to miss out on fourth place in the Women’s Super League (WSL) to Liverpool, having never looked in contention for a Champions League spot. The increased investment from clubs throughout the division means being towards the top is no longer a foregone conclusion. The biggest red flag should be that the only team in the top half of the table United have beaten this season are Tottenham.
To that extent, although Sunday’s performance was comprehensive and accomplished, United were expected to win. They had already beaten Tottenham by this exact scoreline back in December and are the more experienced side, having played in last year’s final against Chelsea.
Ella Toone opens the scoring for United (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
There have been repeated concerns about the way the club is run behind the scenes, with director of women’s football Polly Bancroft departing to become the chief executive of Grimsby Town. There is an expectation that incoming sporting director Dan Ashworth will take some responsibility for the women’s side, with experience from his time at England and Brighton, but he will certainly have his hands full with the men’s team. It will do little to dispel the notion that United staff are spread far too thin when it comes to paying attention to the women’s team.
Skinner was nonplussed about Ratcliffe’s absence from Wembley, shaking his head when asked if he was disappointed about it.
“In all honesty, it just feels like a really positive space to be in. I’ve been really excited by the energy (the new leadership is) driving internally. It won’t be long until we’re talked about in the elite winning teams. I know what’s coming and it’s a really exciting time to be a Manchester United fan.
“What I’d say is that messages have been passed through all the time. There’s constant support and constant communication. We had more than enough representation from our club here.”
Mary Earps celebrates (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
It was a different story for Tottenham, who had chairman Daniel Levy in attendance as well as club legends Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa.
“It shows that we’re doing this for real,” said manager Robert Vilahamn.
“We’re going to be all-in on women’s football. We are showing that the whole club is one club. Everybody is here to support the team today and it shows something.”
Party time for Manchester United! 🏆 #BBCFootball #WomensFACup pic.twitter.com/X9iJQRBHsn
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) May 12, 2024
Ahead of the final, much was made of the fact Manchester United and Tottenham had been promoted to the WSL at the same time. United’s win means they have overcome an important hurdle of achieving a title, but clubs in the past have also fallen prey to those moments covering the realities of where a club is actually at.
Once the confetti has settled on the celebrations, United must make sure they reflect on where this season has left them overall.
(Top photo: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
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Courtesy : https://theathletic.com/5487935/2024/05/13/manchester-united-women-first-major-honour-fa-cup/