Manchester United Women boss Eva Olid has made it clear to her players that they must be ready for the upcoming three games.
Whirlwind stint
Olid has endured a rollercoaster spell so far at United following her arrival in the summer as Marc Skinner’s replacement.
Her appointment at United was made on the back of outstanding achievements at Hearts, having taken the side from the foot of the table to Scottish Premier League title winners within a five-year period.
However, it was a rough start to life at Leigh Sports Village. In her opening two games, Olid was beaten 2-1 by London City Lionesses and 5-0 by Chelsea.
United appear to have reversed their fortunes in recent weeks. A 1-1 draw at the Emirates marked the beginning of a five-game unbeaten run, during which they have risen from the bottom of the WSL to seventh place.
Olid and her players are next in action this weekend when they face WSL newcomers Charlton Athletic. They will then turn their attention to Liverpool in the Subway Players Cup on Wednesday before coming up against cross-town rivals Manchester City next Sunday.
Olid’s remarks
The 41-year-old told MUTV, “I think now we have quite a big squad with the young players helping.”
“I think this week the rotations are important and the players that have opportunities really show that they are ready to play. We need everyone to play these three big games and everyone has to be ready.”
“Every single player has been working their socks off so far this season.” Olid made it clear that she kept tabs on her players during the recently concluded international break.
“I was watching what I could because not all the games were on TV or I could watch, but at the same time looking all the time [at the] results, how many minutes they play, if they came on.”
“I was checking all the time everything, if they score or assist. Yeah, really good positive numbers. Goals, assists, a lot of minutes played from everyone. Young players play a lot too. A lot of positives.”
She emphasised that although Charlton are still seeking their first point of the season, they are by no means straightforward opposition.
“In this league, everything can happen against everyone and especially teams that still didn’t get a win, still they are going to come with more energy. They are fighting for that first win but we have to do everything [to ensure] that doesn’t happen against us and we want to keep the good momentum we had before the break.”
“Still we want to keep the record without a loss [for] as long as possible because it’s a really good feeling. Especially when there’s good feeling in the squad already.”
Charlton vs. United kicks off on Sunday at 2 pm.