2019–20 Manchester United W.F.C. season

The 2019–20 season was Manchester United Women's second season since they were founded and their first in the FA Women's Super League, the professional top-flight women's league in England. The club also competed in the FA Cup and League Cup.

Manchester United Women

2019–20 season
Co-chairmen	Joel and Avram Glazer
Manager	Casey Stoney
Stadium	Leigh Sports Village
FA WSL	4th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Semi-finals
Top goalscorer	League: Lauren James (6) All: Lauren James (9)
Highest home attendance	4,042 (vs. Manchester City, 20 October)
Lowest home attendance	League: 1,707 (vs. Brighton & Hove Albion, 24 November) All: 642 (vs. Brighton & Hove Albion, 15 January, League Cup)
Average home league attendance	2,103
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Following the departure of Alex Greenwood in August 2019, Katie Zelem was named as her successor as club captain.[1]

On 13 March 2020, in line with the FA's response to the coronavirus pandemic, it was announced the season was temporarily suspended until at least 3 April 2020.[2] After later extending the postponement until 30 April, on 3 April, the FA announced that the WSL and Women's Championship would be suspended indefinitely.[3] The season was ultimately ended prematurely on 25 May 2020 with immediate effect.[4]

Pre-season

United prepared for their debut season as a top-flight team with their first ever game against foreign opposition, traveling to Norway to play Toppserien side Vålerenga on 31 July, in conjunction with the men's team who played in the same city the day before. United also faced Norwegian third division side Sandefjord on 3 August and preceded their trip abroad with a closed-doors friendly at home to Blackburn Rovers.[5][6][7]

Date	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers	Attendance
24 July 2019	Blackburn Rovers	H	Behind closed doors, no official scoreline
31 July 2019	Vålerenga	A	1–4	Sigsworth 24'	7,124
3 August 2019	Sandefjord	A	5–0	Green 12', Toone 35', Ross 40', Ladd 61', Sigsworth 67'

FA Women's Super League

Main article: 2019–20 FA WSL

Following a successful debut season in the FA Women's Championship, Manchester United earned promotion to the FA Women's Super League. On 10 May 2019, the FA confirmed Manchester United had been granted a license to compete in the WSL for the 2019–20 season.[8]

Matches

The opening weekend WSL fixtures were announced on 1 July 2019 and included the first Manchester derby between the two women's teams with the fixture being played at the City of Manchester Stadium.[9] The remaining league fixtures were announced on 10 July 2019.[10] Manchester United played 14 of the intended 22 league fixtures prior to the season being cut short and were awarded fourth place on a points-per-game basis, the same place they were when the season ended.[11]

Date	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers	Attendance	League position
7 September 2019	Manchester City	A	0–1		31,213	11th
16 September 2019	Arsenal	H	0–1		2,530	12th
28 September 2019	Liverpool	H	2–0	James 71', Zelem 90+5' (pen.)	2,813	6th
13 October 2019	Tottenham Hotspur	A	3–0	Hanson 13', Neville 52' (o.g.), Ross 90+2'	1,299	4th
27 October 2019	Reading	H	2–0	Hanson 16', Sigsworth 85'	1,997	4th
17 November 2019	Chelsea	A	0–1		4,790	5th
24 November 2019	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	4–0	James 10', Galton (2) 29', 67', Zelem 87' (pen.)	1,707	5th
1 December 2019	West Ham United	A	2–3	Hanson 1', James 80'	1,736	5th
8 December 2019	Everton	H	3–1	James (2) 4', 45', Zelem 11' (pen.)	1,805	4th
15 December 2019	Birmingham City	A	Postponed	Postponed due to waterlogged pitch
5 January 2020	Bristol City	H	0–1		2,021	4th
12 January 2020	Liverpool	A	Postponed	Postponed due to waterlogged pitch
19 January 2020	Tottenham Hotspur	H	3–0	Zelem (2) 58' (pen.), 87', Sigsworth 65'	1,846	4th
2 February 2020	Reading	A	1–1	James 30'	1,256	4th
9 February 2020	Chelsea	H	Postponed	All WSL games postponed due to Storm Ciara[12]
12 February 2020	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	1–1	Walsh 1' (o.g.)	903	5th
23 February 2020	Everton	A	3–2	Galton (2) 21', 29', Toone 63'	893	4th
22 March 2020	West Ham United	H	Cancelled	The FA cancelled all remaining leagues fixtures due to the COVID-19 pandemic on 25 May following the previous indefinite suspension of the league announced on 5 April.[13]
25 March 2020	Birmingham City	A	Cancelled
28 March 2020	Manchester City	H	Cancelled
5 April 2020	Arsenal	A	Cancelled
25 April 2020	Bristol City	A	Cancelled
3 May 2020	Liverpool	A	Cancelled
12 May 2020	Chelsea	H	Cancelled
16 May 2020	Birmingham City	H	Cancelled

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	PPG	Qualification
2	Manchester City	16	13	1	2	39	9	+30	40	2.50	Qualification for the Champions League
3	Arsenal	15	12	0	3	40	13	+27	36	2.40
4	Manchester United	14	7	2	5	24	12	+12	23	1.64
5	Reading	14	6	3	5	21	24	−3	21	1.50
6	Everton	14	6	1	7	21	21	0	19	1.36

Source: FA WSL, BBC
Rules for classification: Initially: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored. After abandonment of season: 1) Points per game

Women's FA Cup

Main article: 2019–20 Women's FA Cup

Manchester United entered the Women's FA Cup in the fourth round with the rest of the top two tiers and were drawn against Manchester City, one of only two all-WSL ties of the round. It was the third time the derby rivals had met in the 2019–20 season having already faced off in the league and League Cup.[14] The match was selected as the televised game of the round live on the BBC Red Button and subsequently rescheduled from the typical Sunday when the rest of the round's fixtures were played, to the preceding Saturday.[15] City won 3–2 with goals from England internationals Ellen White and Jill Scott proving the difference while a controversial no-goal decision put the lack of goal-line technology in women's football under scrutiny.[16][17] It marked the first time Manchester United had lost the first knockout game of either domestic cup competition at the fourth attempt.

Date	Round	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers	Attendance
25 January 2020	Round 4	Manchester City	H	2–3	James 69', Hemp 88' (o.g.)	1,948

FA Women's League Cup

Main article: 2019–20 FA Women's League Cup

Group stage

Manchester United were entered into Group C for the 2019–20 League Cup alongside fellow WSL teams Birmingham City, Everton and Manchester City, and Championship side Leicester City.[18] On 21 November 2019, United defeated Leicester City 11–1 to set a new club record home win and the second largest margin of victory in the competition's history, bettered only by Chelsea's 13–0 victory over London Bees in 2014. Ella Toone also matched the club record for goals in a single game with five.[19][20]

Date	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers	Attendance	Group position
20 October 2019	Manchester City	H	2–0	Zelem 7', Sigsworth 54'	4,042	3rd
3 November 2019	Everton	A	3–0	James 22', Zelem 78' (pen.), A. Turner 87'	361	1st
21 November 2019	Leicester City	H	11–1	Sigsworth 2', Arnot 7', Toone (5) 21', 43', 45', 73', 87', Smith 40', Ross 70', Ladd 83', James 90+1'	1,127	1st
11 December 2019	Birmingham City	A	3–1	Arnot 1', Ross 27', Toone 90+3'	442	1st

Pos	Team	Pld	W	WPEN	LPEN	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		MNU	MCI	BIR	EVE	LEI
1	Manchester United	4	4	0	0	0	19	2	+17	12	Advance to Knock-out stage		—	2–0	—	—	11–1
2	Manchester City	4	3	0	0	1	11	4	+7	9			—	—	2–1	—	5–0
3	Birmingham City	4	2	0	0	2	8	6	+2	6			1–3	—	—	1–0	—
4	Everton	4	1	0	0	3	5	8	−3	3			0–3	1–4	—	—	—
5	Leicester City	4	0	0	0	4	2	25	−23	0			—	—	1–5	0–4	—

Updated to match(es) played on 11 December 2019. Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record

Knockout phase

United qualified top of their group for the second consecutive season, guaranteeing themselves a quarter-final home tie in the process. A 2–1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion saw United reach the semi-final stage for the second consecutive season, setting up a home tie with Chelsea. The London side booked their place in the final with a 1–0 win, a repeat of the narrow scoreline in the team's only other previous meeting, with Chelsea later going on to win the final.[21]

Date	Round	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers	Attendance
15 January 2020	Quarter-final	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	2–1	McManus 13', Ross 75'	642
29 January 2020	Semi-final	Chelsea	H	0–1		1,044

Squad statistics

See also: List of Manchester United W.F.C. records and statistics

Numbers in brackets denote appearances as substitute.

Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward

No.	Pos.	Name	League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total		Discipline
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	Siobhan Chamberlain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	DF	Martha Harris	9 (2)	0	0	0	3 (2)	0	12 (4)	0	0	0
3	DF	Lotta Ökvist	3	0	0	0	2 (1)	0	5 (1)	0	0	0
4	DF	Amy Turner	11 (2)	0	1	0	4 (1)	1	16 (3)	1	3	0
5	DF	Abbie McManus	11	0	1	0	6	1	18	1	3	0
6	MF	Aimee Palmer	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	FW	Ella Toone	5 (8)	1	0	0	3 (2)	6	8 (10)	7	3	1
8	MF	Mollie Green	0	0	0	0	2	0	2	0	0	0
9	FW	Jessica Sigsworth	7 (7)	2	1	0	4 (1)	2	12 (8)	4	2	0
10	MF	Katie Zelem (c)	13 (1)	5	1	0	6	2	20 (1)	7	4	0
11	FW	Leah Galton	12	4	0	0	2	0	14	4	0	0
12	MF	Hayley Ladd	14	0	1	0	4 (2)	1	19 (2)	1	4	0
13	GK	Emily Ramsey	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0
14	MF	Jackie Groenen	12	0	1	0	3	0	16	0	0	0
15	GK	Aurora Mikalsen	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0
16	MF	Lauren James	9 (3)	6	0 (1)	1	2 (3)	2	11 (7)	9	6	1
17	FW	Lizzie Arnot	0 (4)	0	0 (1)	0	3 (2)	2	3 (7)	2	0	0
18	FW	Kirsty Hanson	6 (5)	3	1	0	4	0	11 (5)	3	0	0
19	FW	Jane Ross	7 (4)	1	1	0	3 (3)	3	11 (7)	4	0	0
20	DF	Kirsty Smith	7 (1)	0	1	0	4	1	12 (1)	1	2	0
21	DF	Millie Turner	14	0	1	0	5	0	20	0	1	0
22	GK	Fran Bentley	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	DF	Charlotte Newsham	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	FW	Maria Edwards	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
25	MF	Chloe Williams	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	MF	Rebecca May	0 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0 (1)	0	0	0
27	GK	Mary Earps	14	0	1	0	4	0	19	0	0	0
—	—	Own goals	—	2	—	1	—	0	—	3	—	—

Transfers

In

Date	Pos.	Name	From	Ref.
1 July 2019[lower-alpha 1]	MF	Jackie Groenen	1. FFC Frankfurt	[22]
1 July 2019[lower-alpha 2]	DF	Abbie McManus	Manchester City	[23]
1 July 2019[lower-alpha 3]	MF	Hayley Ladd	Birmingham City	[24]
4 July 2019	FW	Jane Ross	West Ham United	[25]
12 July 2019	GK	Mary Earps	VfL Wolfsburg	[26]
20 August 2019	DF	Lotta Ökvist	Hammarby IF	[27]
6 September 2019	GK	Aurora Mikalsen	Kolbotn	[28]

Out

Date	Pos.	Name	To	Ref.
15 May 2019	MF	Charlie Devlin	Charlton Athletic[lower-alpha 4]	[29][30]
	DF	Naomi Hartley	Sheffield United[lower-alpha 5]	[29][31]
	DF	Lucy Roberts	South Florida Bulls[lower-alpha 6]	[29][32]
	FW	Ebony Salmon	Bristol City[lower-alpha 7]	[29][33]
8 August 2019	DF	Alex Greenwood	Lyon	[34]

Loans out

Date from	Date to	Pos.	Name	To	Ref.
17 August 2019	End of season	DF	Charlotte Newsham	Huddersfield Town	[35]
21 August 2019	23 January 2020	MF	Aimee Palmer	Sheffield United	[36]
11 January 2020	End of season	MF	Mollie Green		[37]
24 January 2020		GK	Emily Ramsey		[38]

Notes

1. Deal agreed 22 May 2019
2. Deal agreed 24 May 2019
3. Deal agreed 5 June 2019
4. Released, joined Charlton Athletic on 9 August 2019
5. Released, joined Sheffield United on 4 July 2019
6. Released, enrolled at University of South Florida on 17 July 2019
7. Released, joined Bristol City on 15 July 2019

References

1. Plant, Michael (6 September 2019). "Katie Zelem named as Man Utd Women captain". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
2. Association, The Football. "Decision made to postpone professional football until Friday 3 April at the earliest". www.thefa.com.
3. "Women's Super League and Championship suspended due to coronavirus". Evening Standard. 13 March 2020.
4. "Statement: FA Barclays WSL and Women's Championship season ended". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
5. "New friendly dates for Reds and United Women". ManUtd.com. Manchester United.
6. "Manchester United Women arrives at Komplett Arena on Saturday 3 August". sandefjordfotball.no (in Norwegian).
7. "Dates for your diary". rovers.co.uk.
8. "Man Utd and Spurs promoted". TheFA.com.
9. "Women's Super League: Manchester City face Manchester United on 2019-20 opening day". BBC Sport. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
10. Plant, Michael (10 July 2019). "United Women's WSL fixtures for 2019/20". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
11. "Women's Super League outcome decided". www.manutd.com.
12. Duncker, Charlotte (9 February 2020). "Manchester United vs Chelsea in WSL postponed due to Storm Ciara". Manchester Evening News.
13. "Women's Super League season cancelled". The Independent. 25 May 2020.
14. "Women's FA Cup dates". TheFA.com. The Football Association.
15. "SheBelieves Cup & Women's FA Cup ties to be broadcast live on the BBC". BBC Sport. 20 January 2020.
16. Wrack, Suzanne (25 January 2020). "Manchester United rue lack of tech support as City win FA Cup derby". The Observer.
17. Whyatt, Katie (25 January 2020). "Lack of technology in women's football under scrutiny after Manchester United's contentious FA Cup exit to Manchester City". The Telegraph.
18. "Continental League Cup groups". TheFA.com. The Football Association.
19. Plant, Michael (21 November 2019). "Man Utd Women v Leicester Women match report 21 November 2019". ManUtd.com. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
20. "Women's Continental League Cup: Manchester United beat 11–1 Leicester City in group stage". BBC Sport. 21 November 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
21. Whyatt, Katie (29 January 2020). "Chelsea through to Continental Cup final for the first time with narrow victory at Manchester United". The Telegraph.
22. "Groenen agrees to sign for Manchester United Women". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
23. "McManus agrees to sign for United Women". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 24 May 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
24. "United Women reach agreement with Ladd". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
25. "United Women sign Scotland striker Ross". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 4 July 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
26. "Manchester United Women sign Mary Earps". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
27. "Lotta Okvist signs for United Women". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 20 August 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
28. "Aurora Mikalsen signs for United Women". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
29. "Stoney wishes four released players well". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
30. Pizzey, Chloe (9 August 2019). "Charlie Devlin signs for the Addicks". cafcwomen.co.uk. Charlton Athletic Women's Football Club. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
31. "Naomi Hartley signs for the Blades". sufc.co.uk. Sheffield United FC. 4 July 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
32. "Schilte-Brown Signs Three International Bulls to 2019 Roster". University of South Florida. 17 July 2019.
33. "Salmon signs for City Women". bcfc.co.uk. Bristol City FC.
34. "Man United agree terms for Alex Greenwood to join Lyon". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 4 August 2019. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
35. "Huddersfield Town Women's campaign begins on Sunday: Season preview". htafc.com.
36. "Aimee Palmer signs for the Blades". sufc.co.uk.
37. "Mollie Green joins Sheffield United on loan". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. 11 January 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
38. "Blades Women net Man United 'keeper Emily Ramsey on loan". www.sufc.co.uk. Sheffield United. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.

External links

• Official website (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish)