Six shots, two matches, one very bad number
Manchester United have taken six shots in their opening two WSL games. That figure matches the fewest ever recorded at this stage by a side that was not promoted into the division, and the only other team to manage it was Leicester City last season, in a campaign that ended in relegation.
Eva Olid arrived in Manchester in the summer from Hearts with a mandate to rebuild around youth after several senior players left. Two games in, the plan has produced a defeat to London City on opening night and a 5-0 home loss to Chelsea on Sunday. United have now lost three consecutive WSL matches for the first time in their history and are winless in six league games, with two draws and four defeats.
Try it for $0.99.
A team that cannot get up the pitch
The shot count is a symptom. The deeper problem is territory. United recorded a field tilt of 17.4% against Chelsea, their fourth lowest in a WSL match, which means they barely passed the ball in the areas where goals get made. Possession dropped to 37.2%, their lowest since facing Arsenal in January. They managed four touches in the opposition box and 21 successful entries into the final third. Both are club records in the WSL, at the wrong end of the scale.
Seventy per cent of their touches this season have come in their own half. They have not created a single big chance in either game, the first time they have gone two WSL matches without one since March 2024. Their expected goals figure against Chelsea came to 0.20, with only one lower total on record: the 0.15 they managed against Manchester City in February 2022.
The creative players have gone quiet. Jess Park created 30 chances last season and none so far. Ella Toone has yet to touch the ball in the opposition box across two appearances, something she last failed to do in consecutive WSL games in April 2023. Summer signing Andrea Medina, with six box touches, is the only United player registering in the danger area at all.
What Sunday actually cost them
Chelsea forced 25 high turnovers, six of which ended in shots. Olid’s side made four errors leading to shots, a club record, and two of those led straight to goals. Dominique Janssen became the first United player in WSL history to make two errors leading to goals in the same match. Phallon Tullis-Joyce made six saves and still picked the ball out of her net five times.
United finished fourth last season, nine points behind Chelsea. The Opta supercomputer still gives them a 35.7% chance of repeating that, down 3.6 percentage points since the opening weekend. It also now gives them a 0.2% chance of automatic relegation, where before the season it gave them none. Liverpool and Manchester City are waiting next month.
Discover the rest of our Football news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply