A concerning situation appears to be unfolding regarding Manchester United’s Women’s team.
After being launched amid much fanfare in 2019, the Women’s team appears to be a low priority for the club.
Manager Casey Stoney quit the club in May, and The Mail reported at the time, Stoney has ‘has been unhappy with the support structure and facilities’ at the club.
Rather than make a swift appointment, the manager position still lies vacant nearly two months on.
The squad has been weakened by the departures of five players and The Athletic report star player Lauren James is keen to move to Chelsea.
Crisis mode
The report from The Athletic claims United’s remaining players are set to approach the PFA and ask for help.
The report says the players ‘are in the dark’ over the club’s ambitions for the upcoming season amid frustration at failure to appoint a manager.
There are more worrying claims regarding the facilities, with the report adding: “Several sources described the quality of housing accommodation available to players last season as comparable to student housing and “disgusting”. “
There is time for the club to appoint a manager, with the season only starting on September 3, but the issues appear to have more underlying concerns than simply that, when you look at Stoney’s reported reason for quitting in the first place.
The report says United have been working to implement a structure behind the scenes, with new medical and sports science staff recruited.
But clearly the players are not feeling enthused at this point, and you can’t blame them, without a manager and seeing several players depart without new faces coming in.
The report adds: “Sources familiar with the squad say they are losing faith in communication channels with Steve Deaville, a finance director who has been the de facto general manager of the women’s team, and John Murtough, Manchester United’s first football director.”
Joel Glazer said Women’s team was priority
Glazer was quizzed about the Women’s team at the June fan forum.
He said: “We are determined to have a women’s team that follows the values of our club and grows, and that we can all be proud of.”
At present the club is falling short of those ambitions.
The Women’s team is a young one without a history and they should be looking to establish themselves. Expectations are low for a side in its infancy, but what United fans don’t want is to be embarrassed by the players being treated poorly and clear discontent between the squad and senior management.
It appears substantial investment and attention is required, and while there is time to put this right, United need to do so quickly, for the sake of the players.
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