Manchester United Women’s unbeaten start to the 2025/26 WSL season continued on Friday night, taking a deserved point from a 1-1 with draw with reigning champions Chelsea.

In challenging weather at the newly renamed Progress With Unity Stadium, Wieke Kaptein put the Blues ahead early in the contest, before Anna Sandberg’s first United goal not long afterwards ultimately proved decisive in the final result.

Marc Skinner had made a single change to the team that beat Liverpool last Sunday, with Sandberg returning after a brief illness, pushing Friodlina Rolfo higher up the left flank and Melvine Malard moving to the bench. After sitting out last season while pregnant and on maternity leave, Hannah Blundell made a welcome return to the matchday squad.

Prior to kick-off, a moment’s silence was observed in tribute to the victims of Thursday’s Heaton Park Synagogue attack.

FIRST HALF

Spurred on by the vocal home crowd, United made a confident start and just over one minute in had tested Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, sticking out a foot to block Elisabeth Terland’s low near-post shot as the Reds countered. Moments later, another breakaway saw Jess Park lift one over the bar from a narrow angle after Ella Toone carried the ball for the best part of 50 yards.

Chelsea’s opener in the ninth minute came against that early run of play. Catarina Macario’s clever backheel in the penalty box played in goalscorer Kaptein, who found the far bottom corner from close range.

With the wind from Storm Amy picking up, United weathered further pressure from the visitors and managed to regain a foothold with a spell of good possession. Dominique Janssen lifted the crowd with a driving run through the heart of the Chelsea defence that resulted in a blocked Park shot. But there was no stopping Sandberg’s stunning strike midway through the half.

The ball fell nicely to our Swedish left-back from Toone’s knockdown and it was goal-bound from the moment it left her foot. Incidentally, it was United’s fourth goal from outside the box in five leagues games this season.

Just over half an hour in, Phallon Tullis-Joyce threw up a huge right hand to deny Kaptein what looked like would be a certain goal with a superb reflex save. The same player then steered the rebound over the top. At the other end, a curling Toone shot just barely missed the target as the ball arced agonisingly close to nestling in the top corner.

SECOND HALF

The heavens had opened by the time the teams returned from the break, not that it dampened United’s spirits. Toone once more fired a shot that flew narrowly off target, while a deflection soon carried Rolfo’s effort onto the top of the bar, within a few minutes of the restart.

The Reds continued to ask questions of Chelsea as Park fired just over from distance, while Skinner sought to keep things fresh up top just shy of an hour in by bringing on Melvine Malard. The threat also remained at the other end, however, with Tullis-Joyce saving – and making sure to hold onto the wet ball – speculative strikes from Macario and substitute Alyssa Thompson.

Both teams battled hard as the game neared its closing stages, determined to give no inch but also still searching for a potential winner. Park was causing Chelsea problems down the right, seeing a teasing ball into the box only just cut out by Nathalie Bjorn, while Malard stung Hampton’s palms. Meanwhile, Tullis-Joyce was alert enough to rush out and reach a loose ball before Thompson. Phallon then had to be alert again to get down low and parry from Keira Walsh.

As Chelsea threatened to snatch it at the death, the combined efforts of Celin Bizet Donnum and Maya Le Tissier – the latter making a record 71st consecutive WSL start for a single club – blocked Guro Reiten’s stoppage-time strike, celebrated like a goal.

In the end, a draw was perhaps the fairest result from an outstanding and intense spectacle, with precious little to separate the teams in the stats.

MATCH DETAILS

United: Tullis-Joyce; Riviere (Bizet Donnum 76), Le Tissier (c), Janssen, Sandberg; Zigiotti, Miyazawa; Park, Toone, Rolfo (Williams 81); Terland (Malard 59).

Subs not used: Middleton-Patel, Rendell, Blundell, George, Awujo, Naalsund.

Goal: Sandberg 20.

Booked: Zigiotti.

Chelsea: Hampton; Carpenter, Bjorn, Bright (c), Baltimore; Walsh, Cuthbert (Nusken 78); Rytting Kaneryd (Reiten 83), Kaptein (Thompson 52), Beever-Jones; Macario (Kerr 78).

Subs not used: Peng, Buurman, Jean-Francois, Potter, Hamano.

Goal: Kaptein 9.

Attendance: 5,105.

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Manchester United Under-21s claimed all three points with a 2-1 win over Everton in our Friday evening Premier League 2 meeting at Walton Hall Park.

Jack Fletcher netted the opener with a powerful effort on the edge of the box, providing the young Reds with the lead after just 12 minutes, but Omari Benjamin headed home an equaliser for the hosts just before the half-time whistle.

The second half was a relatively even affair, punctured by some persistent forward play from Jayce Fitzgerald, which was rewarded with a fortunate deflection that provided our second goal and, ultimately, all three points.

FIRST HALF

Following a perfectly observed minute’s silence at Walton Hall Park to pay tribute to those affected by the recent Heaton Park Synagogue attack, the game got under way on Merseyside.

Storm Amy brought testing conditions for the two sides, the ball occasionally acting unpredictably in the high winds, but the Reds didn’t let the weather impact their rhythmic passing game in the early moments.

Jack Fletcher provided the opener in the 12th minute, smashing a finish into the top-right of George Pickford’s net with his left foot, after being teed up on the edge of the box by Gabriele Biancheri.

United were in control for much of the first period, but Everton grew into the game as the interval neared and made their pressure pay, when Benjamin nodded home a strong Joshua van Schoor delivery minutes before the halfway point.

SECOND HALF

Having headed back to the dressing rooms in stalemate, that carried through the break and back out onto the pitch, with little to separate sides for the first 25 minutes of the second half.

The best chance during that period fell to James Scanlon, who hit a driven effort from outside of the penalty area that whistled past the wrong side of the post, despite the effort looking on target when it left his boot.

The Gibraltar international was in amongst the action for our second goal of the game, kicking off a move that eventually found Sam Mather on the left wing, who played a pass into the middle to Fitzgerald. Our no.10 controlled the delivery at first, but as the Everton defence went to clear the danger, it cannoned off the midfielder and into the back of Pickford’s net.

The Toffees showed fight in the final few minutes to try and level the game once more, but our defence stood strong to quell the threat and ensure the victory headed back across the M62 with the Reds.

MATCH DETAILS

United: Murdock; McAllister, Fredricson (Munro 65), Armer, J.Fletcher; Devaney (c), T.Fletcher; Scanlon (Mantato 80), Fitzgerald, Musa (Mather 69); Biancheri (Obi 69).

Subs not used: Janusz.

Booked: Armer.

Goals: J.Fletcher 12, Fitzgerald 78 | Benjamin 43.

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Marc Skinner explained that Jess Park and Ella Toone are helping to make each other better after Manchester United went toe-to-toe with WSL leaders Chelsea on Friday night.

Park has been a breath of fresh air since her summer arrival, adding a directness to United’s attacking play. But it’s more than just what she herself does on the ball.

“She’s electric, she twists, she turns,” Skinner said at his post-match press conference. “Chelsea adapted their shape to play against us with two controllers in [midfield] to make sure that they killed Jess’s spaces. But she still found them. I thought she was incredible.

“And I think she and Tooney brought each other to life a little bit more and they’re much more fluid now than we’ve ever been. Jess is a big reason to help us do that.”

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BRAVER ON THE BALL

By Skinner’s own admission, our famous FA Cup semi-final victory over Chelsea in 2024 was born out of a more smash and grab style. But this match was different, standing up to the reigning champions – being “braver” with the ball is something the boss has preached in recent months.

Against Chelsea alone, Toone, Park, Dominique Janssen and Jayde Riviere all made long and direct carries with the ball right through the middle of the pitch, something that has been a recurring theme all season.

“I felt we were excellent with that today,” the boss said. “I felt that we twisted, we turned, we took on one-v-one. If you do that, you’re unpredictable, and then that really breaks [opposition] structures.

“You can break a press with a pass, but then you’re still [facing] player for player [defence]. If you break it with a dribble, then you have an overload, and I’ve asked more of that from us.

“We have the players now, Jess is a great example of that. And it just promotes people to do the same, and I think that’s a real key difference of us today, is that when people lock us, we can turn you, and then once we break you, you’ve got to panic, because we’re aggressive and we go quick.”

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Amorim: What I like most about Sesko

Ruben Amorim knows Benjamin Sesko will be relieved to be off the mark for Manchester United but feels another aspect of his play has been most impressive.

The summer import from RB Leipzig scored our goal at Brentford and, although it counted for little in the end during a 3-1 defeat, it was one big positive to take from last weekend’s game.

Although it was his seventh appearance in total, he has been introduced carefully since the summer transfer.

It was only his fourth league start and, in one of those, he was withdrawn at half-time due to Casemiro’s red card against Chelsea.

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“The most important thing is to win games,” the boss told MUTV in his exclusive club media interview, ahead of the Sunderland game.

“That will give confidence for everybody in the team.

“Of course, he was anxious for his first goal. The thing I like most in Ben is, even when things are hard for him with the ball, he is working hard in every minute of the game.

“That is the most important thing in the moment.”

Amorim also stressed how important it is to be focused for the entire 90 minutes, plus stoppage time, against the Black Cats, in a bid to ensure a positive frame of mind heading into another international break.

“It’s really important [to start well],” he said. “But what is more important is to understand the game has 90 minutes, it has different moments. That is the thing we need to learn. 

“Sometimes, we start really well. Sometimes, we have a problem that we had at Brentford, every time we suffer a goal, we lose a little bit our organisation. So, in the end, of course it’s really important to start well but it’s important to play the game 90 minutes and we can create situations. So we just need to give time to the team to win games.

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“It’s completely different,” he said in terms of the mood going into the break, regarding whether we can get the three points on Saturday.

“It’s a massive difference to go to the stop with a positive result and we have to win it. So, again, we are in the beginning of the season, we could do better in the last games, but, we prove already when we are focused, we can win any game.

“It’s really important to win this one to enjoy the break.”

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Amorim reveals team news for Saturday

Head coach Ruben Amorim has provided an update from the Manchester United camp, on the eve of Saturday’s Premier League clash with Sunderland.

The 15:00 BST kick-off at Old Trafford is our last fixture before the latest international break and a chance to pick up a third successive home victory, on the back of the wins over Burnley and Chelsea.

Casemiro is back after the Brazil international served his one-game ban, for the red card against Chelsea, during the defeat at Brentford.

Amad missed the trip south last weekend, following a family bereavement, but is available again after training at Carrington this week.

“They are really important,” Amorim told MUTV’s Mark Sullivan in his exclusive pre-match interview, when asked about the pair.

“Casemiro gives us a lot of experience. That is good.

“Amad, we missed Amad in the last game. When we want to push some opponents, he is one extra guy where he is very good in one against one. So we are really happy to have him.”

Lisandro Martinez remains out, while Noussair Mazraoui is not expected to return until after the upcoming international break, with a trip to Liverpool next on the agenda.

Tyrell Malacia, who has not featured for the Reds since the Europa League win at FCSB last January, trained with the first-team group this week.

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SUNDERLAND’S TEAM NEWS

Head coach Regis Le Bris dismissed reports Nordi Mukiele is a doubt for the game, while Luke O’Nien is available again after recovering from a shoulder injury suffered in last season’s play-off final to make the bench in the 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest last time out.

Romaine Mundle will remain absent for the next week six weeks or so, due to a hamstring issue, and is on the sidelines, along with Dennis Cirkin, Leo Hjelde and Aji Alese.

However, the Black Cats’ raft of new signings have really hit the ground running, although one of them, Mozambique full-back Reinildo, is suspended.

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Ruben Amorim says it is time for his Manchester United side to show our true colours in Saturday’s Premier League clash with Sunderland.

During his press conference at Carrington to preview the 15:00 BST kick-off at Old Trafford, the boss was asked what he would tell supporters to retain the belief that things will turn around.

“It’s not time to say,” he insisted. “It’s time to show. Again, I can look at the games this year and, for me, they are completely different.

“There are some things that are the same and that is nothing about the position on the pitch, the way we put the ball, it’s other things that we cannot change.

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“We show that thing in certain games,” he added.

“In the other games, we are not the same team in some details. I have nothing to say in this moment. My job is to prepare the team and let’s go for the next game.”

The Reds go into the fixture, our last before the international break, on the back of a setback at Brentford last weekend, when we slipped to a 3-1 defeat in south-west London.

Sunderland have started the season well, sitting fifth and racking up 11 points, with their most recent outing a splendid 1-0 away win at Nottingham Forest.

“We had some moments, if you see during these six games, during this season, we are not always the same team in the small things,” explained Amorim.

“More in the way we play, all the effort that we put [in], the maximum effort that we put in every single thing, is not the same in different matches. We have to find that balance, it will change everything for us.”

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Every word: Ruben’s pre-Sunderland press conference

Ruben Amorim addressed journalists at Carrington on Friday, discussing Manchester United’s upcoming home Premier League fixture against Sunderland, as well as his latest thoughts on the team’s system.

United go into our seventh league game of the new campaign sitting 14th in the Premier League table, with two wins so far, both recorded at home – against Burnley and Chelsea – which should provide confidence going into this one.

However, Sunderland arrive with huge belief of their own, having earned 11 points already so far since their return to the top flight, a tally which has them sitting fifth.

Speaking to the press, United head coach Amorim considered the quality the Black Cats will offer, the job done there by manager Regis Le Bris, and the latest opinions about his own formation.

Read every word from the boss below.

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First of all, your thoughts on the terror attack at a synagogue in Manchester yesterday…

“A crazy world, we are living in at the moment, a lot of these things are happening. Of course, our sympathy for the victims and we will pay tribute tomorrow, but it is a crazy world in this moment.”

Hi Ruben, the next challenge is Sunderland, give us your thoughts on what that challenge will be tomorrow?

“It’s going to be a really tough match, they are doing really well. And then, when you see the games, they draw with one less player in the final [moments] of the game, they draw, [get] one point, and then they win in the final play against Brentford, [to get] another three points. I think the details are changing the table a lot, so we need to pay attention to that. It’s a team that plays really well, it’s a clear 4-3-3 system with a lot of rotations in the side of the pitch. They are confident and they know that we are going to be under pressure and we need to be able to play with that and we are prepared for a tough, tough match.”

And just a comment on the job that Regis Le Bris has done and the start they’ve made under him…

“It’s not just the table and all the results, that’s what matters most in the end, but it’s the way they play, a clear identity. A very good manager and a very good team.”

Ruben, what are you seeing and feeling at the training ground that makes you think the team can start performing on a more consistent level?

“We already talked about that. We had some moments, if you see during these six games, during this season, we are not always the same team in the small things. More in the way we play, all the effort that we put [in], the maximum effort that we put in every single thing, is not the same in different matches. We have to find that balance, it will change everything for us.”

Some former players have been quite heavy in their criticism this week: Wayne Rooney saying ‘this is not Manchester United, the culture’s not right’ and Gary Neville criticising the system. Can that be quite hard to listen to?

“It’s normal. You cannot run away from the results. And then you have the baggage from last season, but last season, for me, doesn’t matter. In relation to this season, we already spoke about that. We’ve had six games this season and we lost three, and then we have to look to the games that we lost, if you lost against Arsenal because of the system? It’s your job to make the opinion. When you look at the game against City, was the first thing you think, when the game starts, the system? I think you don’t think about the system in that moment. And Brentford? I don’t look at the way we concede goals, the way we create chances. There is nothing to do with the system. That is my opinion. And I’m not saying that this team would play better in a different system or not, that is not my point. My point is that if I look at the games that we didn’t win, the most important thing when I watch the game is not that we lost the game because of the system. That is my opinion. Then people have different opinions and that is okay.”

Ruben, you spoke last season so much about the fans backing you. This season, that has gone now, they stayed with you and believed you when you said things will be better this season. What do you say to the fans to give them the belief that it will be better?

“It’s not time to say. It’s time to show. Again, I can look at the games this year and, for me, they are completely different. There are some things that are the same and that is nothing about the position on the pitch, the way we put the ball [in], it’s other things that we cannot change. We show that thing in certain games. In the other games, we are not the same team in some details. I have nothing to say in this moment. My job is to prepare the team and let’s go for the next game.”

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I know we’ve asked you this a few times before. Do the players understand what you’re asking them because it did look as though last Saturday was very disjointed?

“It was. It was. It was. But again, you cannot say one thing that doesn’t work when it works on one weekend, and on the other weekend it doesn’t. When one thing doesn’t work, it doesn’t work every day. But when one thing works one day, and then another day doesn’t work, the other day works really well again, it’s something about the way we do the same thing. So we need to do the same thing in the same way every day and we are not doing that. That is my opinion. Some of you guys have a different opinion and that is okay.”

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