Manchester United are on the brink of making history, as they stand just 90 minutes away from their first major final since their formation five years ago. After a 13-year absence from senior women’s football, United re-entered a team into the second-tier Championship for the 2018-19 season, which they finished as champions.
Goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain was one of the 21 players United signed for that debut season and remembers the early days as a unique and surreal experience. She was given a tour of Old Trafford and the museum, and was given a feeling of how big United is as a club. Since then, the club has gone from strength to strength on the pitch and is now in contention for a domestic double.
On Saturday they host Brighton in the Women’s FA Cup semi-final. Victory would seal a place at Wembley Stadium on 14 May, and a first final since their formation. It is a sharp contrast to when midfielder Izzy Christiansen was starting her footballing journey at United. She said that the club’s lack of a senior team back then left a “gaping hole” in English women’s football.
With no senior path available at United, Christiansen was forced to move to Everton as a youth player to pursue her ambitions. Now back with Everton, she said of her time at United: “It took a very long time to re-establish a women’s team, and there were a lot of questions asked when the WSL was formed, for the first four or five years. Where is Manchester United Women, why is it not here?”
United eventually formed a team, and have worked upwards from the Championship to become a very good one. Goalkeeper Chamberlain said that United wanted to replicate the success of the men’s team, with an emphasis on home grown players from the set up. Fellow academy alumnus Katie Zelem returned to the club in 2018 following United’s Championship entry and has remained there since, becoming captain in 2019.
Christiansen said that the connection with the original United side is key to the team’s identity, and a source of their potential success this season. She said: “You know now if you come to Man Utd at eight years old, you know there is a chance to become a star player.”
United have never reached an FA Cup semi-final but they have made it to the last four of the League Cup on three occasions. They will be firm favourites on Saturday against the WSL’s bottom side Brighton, who have just appointed a new manager in Melissa Phillips. Even as United continue to make strides on the field, off it there remains some uncertainty with a takeover looming in the future, bringing questions as to how much support the women’s team will get from whichever bidding party triumphs.
For now, they sit a point clear at the top of the WSL and 90 minutes from Wembley. Christiansen said that United have built a winning mentality and have had the resilience to keep fighting and break into the top four. She added: “I’m sure the manager and players haven’t achieved what they want to yet which undoubtedly would be silverware, but a first final will be massive.”
Manchester United are on the cusp of making history as they stand just one game away from their first major final since their reformation five years ago. After 13 years without a senior women’s team, United entered a team into the second-tier Championship for the 2018-19 season and finished as champions. Goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain was one of 21 players signed for that debut season and remembers it as an exciting and unique experience.
Since then, United have gone from strength to strength on the pitch and are now in contention for a domestic double. On Saturday they host Brighton in the Women’s FA Cup semi-final. Victory would seal a place at Wembley Stadium on 14 May and would be a huge milestone for United since their formation.
Midfielder Izzy Christiansen said that the club’s lack of a senior team back then left a “gaping hole” in English women’s football. With no senior path available at United, Christiansen was forced to move to Everton as a youth player to pursue her ambitions.
United eventually formed a team and have worked upwards from the Championship to become a very good one. Goalkeeper Chamberlain said that United wanted to replicate the success of the men’s team, with an emphasis on home grown players from the set up. Fellow academy alumnus Katie Zelem returned to the club in 2018 and has remained there since, becoming captain in 2019.
Christiansen said that the connection with the original United side is key to the team’s identity, and a source of their potential success this season. She said: “You know now if you come to Man Utd at eight years old, you know there is a chance to become a star player.”
United have never reached an FA Cup semi-final but have made it to the last four of the League Cup on three occasions. They will be firm favourites on Saturday against Brighton who have just appointed a new manager in Melissa Phillips. Even as United continue to make strides on the field, off it there remains some uncertainty with a takeover looming in the future, bringing questions as to how much support the women’s team will get from whichever bidding party triumphs.
For now, they sit a point clear at the top of the WSL and 90 minutes from Wembley. Christiansen said that United have built a winning mentality and have had the resilience to keep fighting and break into the top four. She added: “I’m sure the manager and players haven’t achieved what they want to yet which undoubtedly would be silverware, but a first final will be massive.”