Manchester United manager Eva Olid has described the criticism directed at her side after their poor start to the Women’s Super League season as “normal”, saying it does not affect her personally.
Olid took charge in the summer following the departure of Marc Skinner, arriving from the Scottish side Hearts. Her opening two WSL matches have both ended in defeat: a 2-1 loss away at London City Lionesses on the opening day, followed by a 5-0 thrashing at home to rivals Chelsea last weekend.
The 41-year-old Spaniard is attempting to implement a new attacking style of play built heavily around possession. In the first two games, however, United have managed only two shots on target and have held less than 40% of the ball in both matches, which has brought scrutiny on the team’s performances.
Asked whether she has found that criticism difficult to take, Olid said: “Yes and no. That is part of the job. I don’t think it affects me. It is constructive criticism and that is normal. I understand that. The first two performances have not been good.”
She added: “We are the first to say we are not happy. The other part is the part I don’t understand – people wanting to hurt [us], but they are not going to. People that understand football know that the beginning and how you start does not define how you end the season. We know the direction and what we are doing will give us success in the long term. So yeah, I’m good. The only thing that is important for me is the players. I’m worried always that they need to feel good and strong, nothing else.”
There is little immediate relief in the fixture list. United travel to Emirates Stadium on Saturday to face Arsenal, who are unbeaten in 19 WSL games, and United have not won there since November 2022. Olid’s side sit bottom of the table with zero points and one goal scored.
Olid framed the difficult spell as part of a longer process. “Yeah, football is like life. You have good moments and difficult moments. I think all the teams in the season have a difficult moment. Ours is the start,” she said. “We are learning as a team to grow because the difficult moments make you grow. Once we’ve passed this difficult moment and start [to build] momentum, I think we will be so much better. My main message [to the players] has been about them being themselves. They are not showing in the first two matches who they are and what they can do.”
The manager has urged her players to keep hold of the defensive solidity they developed under Skinner, which helped carry the club to the Champions League quarter-finals, while the new ideas are introduced gradually. She has previously called for patience, arguing United need time to adapt. “They cannot forget what they were good at before. At the same time, little by little, we need to implement the new style,” she said. “But it’s impossible to be doing everything. The players have been so focused and thinking a lot – overthinking maybe – trying to do everything and in the end, they don’t do anything because they are not expressing themselves like I know they can.”
Arsenal manager Renee Slegers said Olid has “had so little time” and that she understands the challenge her counterpart is facing. “As a coach it’s a decision you make – are you going to change things straight away or are you going to have another approach where, over time, you look to try to change things progressively?” Slegers said. “That’s probably the balance for her. I don’t know what her philosophy is but I imagine it’s a challenge. I understand the disappointment from a fan perspective – but there has been so little time.”