With Willie Kirk having guided his Leicester City side to the top of the Barclays Women’s Super League table after the first two matchdays, the Foxes would face tougher competition on Sunday as they headed north – with a raucous Leigh Sports Village and a resilient Manchester United side awaiting them.
MUN: Earps; George, Turner, Le Tissier, Lundell; Zelem, Ladd; Malard, Miyazawa, García; Parris
LEI: Leitzig; Nevin, Green, Howard, Bott; O’Brien, Tierney, Cayman, Goodwin; Petermann, Whelan
Manchester United were dealt an early blow as these two unbeaten sides clashed in the outskirts of Greater Manchester on Sunday, with Gabby George forced to limp off after just nine minutes – forcing Jayde Riviere’s introduction after the Canadian failed to impress against Paris Saint-Germain in midweek.
It was Marc Skinner’s side that came closest to opening the scoring in the first half, with Hinata Miyazawa striking the underside of the crossbar as she continues to have an impact since her arrival in the recent transfer window.
But perhaps against the run of play, it was Aileen Whelan that fired the Foxes into the lead in the second half – arriving at the back post to turn a free-kick over the line and past a despairing Mary Earps.
Embed from Getty ImagesTheir lead did not last long though, with Maya Le Tissier heading home just seven minutes later to restore parity and cue wild celebrations among the Manchester United faithful.
The action at Leigh Sports Village was far from over though, with Lena Petermann forcing a save from United’s English shotstopper before Nikita Parris tested Earps’ opposite number in the dying stages of this table-topping clash.
Leicester City sit second in the league after picking ip a point, while Manchester United sit fifth in the Barclays Women’s Super League ahead of Wednesday’s trip to PSG’s Parc des Princes, where they will contest the second leg of their UEFA Women’s Champions League qualifier. The scoreline currently sits at 1-1 after an even first leg in Leigh.
