Manchester United should have entered August refining their preparations for the new Women’s Super League season. Instead, they are changing head coach with barely a month remaining.
Marc Skinner’s five-year tenure ended by mutual agreement on Monday. According to The Athletic, former Hearts coach Eva Olid is now expected to replace him, with an appointment potentially moving quickly.
The timing creates an obvious question: why make such a significant change now? Skinner’s results do not provide the complete answer. The more revealing issue appears to be a disagreement over what Manchester United’s women’s team should become.
Results Alone Do Not Explain Skinner’s Departure
United did not achieve all their objectives last season. They finished nine points outside the WSL’s top three, lost the League Cup final to Chelsea and therefore missed out on European qualification for 2026/27. Their Champions League campaign ended in the quarter-finals.
Those results fell short of a club expected to challenge for major honours, but they hardly represented a complete collapse. Skinner had also delivered Manchester United’s first major women’s trophy during his tenure.
BBC Sport reports that United remained satisfied with the team’s results earlier in the year, with no internal discussions over Skinner’s position before the World Sevens tournament in May.
The situation changed as planning for the new season developed. Conversations reportedly exposed a growing gap between Skinner’s desire for greater squad investment and United’s preference for a more sustainable, academy-focused model.
Once that disagreement became clear, continuing together became increasingly difficult.
Skinner Had Publicly Asked for More
Skinner’s position on the squad had not been hidden. Following a 3-0 defeat against Manchester City in March, he argued that the players were giving everything but required investment in specific areas to meet expectations. He returned to that subject after the League Cup final and again at the end of the season.
United have since signed defender Andrea Medina and goalkeeper Janina Leitzig, but their squad remains short of the depth enjoyed by the leading WSL clubs.
At the same time, important players have left. Chelsea paid £850,000 for Melvine Malard, while Millie Turner and Lisa Naalsund joined Birmingham City for six-figure fees. Selling players before their contracts expire is a financial improvement on losing Alessia Russo, Mary Earps and Ona Batlle for nothing. It does not automatically make the playing squad stronger.
Skinner seemingly wanted a greater proportion of that income reinvested immediately. United’s hierarchy appear unwilling to treat the women’s team as a genuine priority, with the continued lack of investment offering one of the clearest signs of that.
The Financial Gap Is Already Significant
United’s strategy cannot be separated from the spending of their rivals. BBC Sport reports that the club’s wage bill stood at £5.9 million in 2024/25, compared with Chelsea’s £14.5 million. Chelsea have since paid heavily for Malard, while Arsenal have recruited established internationals including Georgia Stanway and Ona Batlle.
United are attempting to compete against clubs with greater squad depth and much larger financial commitments.
The club’s view is that the current WSL spending trajectory may not be sustainable. Their alternative involves increased academy investment, developing homegrown players and using transfer income to support the wider operation.
There is logic behind that plan. A productive academy can reduce recruitment costs, create valuable first-team players and build a clearer identity. It is also a slower model, and there is no guarantee it will keep United close to clubs investing aggressively in proven senior talent.
Why Eva Olid Fits the New Plan
Eva Olid’s expected appointment makes sense when viewed through this strategic change. The 40-year-old took charge of Hearts in July 2021 after the club had finished bottom of the Scottish Women’s Premier League. Nearly five years later, she left having guided them to their first SWPL title.
That progression demonstrates her ability to build over time rather than simply manage an already dominant squad. Her work at Hearts required player development, patience and improvement across several seasons.
United are reportedly looking for a coach with a record of bringing young players into senior football. Olid’s background aligns more naturally with that requirement than a coach expecting major first-team investment every summer.
Her reported appointment would therefore be more than a replacement for Skinner. It would formalise the direction that contributed to his departure.
A Title Winner Is Not a Shield Against Structural Questions
Eva Olid’s success with Hearts gives her credibility, but the step into Manchester United brings a very different kind of pressure.
She would inherit a club judged against Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City every week. Supporters will not assess the season solely through the number of academy players receiving minutes. They will also look at league position, performances against rivals and progress in domestic cups.
United have no European schedule this season, which should create more opportunities for young players and additional time on the training pitch. That could help Olid introduce her ideas without the disruption of midweek Champions League matches.
The absence of Europe is also evidence of the competitive gap she has been hired to close. If senior depth remains limited, Olid may face the same problem Skinner identified: expectations shaped by the Manchester United name without resources matching those expectations.
Sustainability Must Still Produce a Competitive Team
Manchester United have taken steps to improve their development structure. The girls’ academy is expected to train at Carrington this season, and the club says significant investment has been made in its youth pathway. Selling Malard, Turner and Naalsund has also generated income that can be reinvested.
The unanswered question concerns how quickly that long-term work will support the first team.
Academies require time. Young players require protection, experienced teammates and room to make mistakes. Asking them to develop while simultaneously chasing Champions League qualification can create conflicting demands.
A sustainable strategy can be sensible without being sufficient. United still need enough senior quality to prevent Eva Olid’s first season from becoming an exercise in managing shortages.
The Coaching Change Clarifies United’s Choice
Skinner’s departure does not prove Manchester United have abandoned their ambitions. It indicates that the club have chosen a different method for pursuing them.
He wanted more immediate investment after guiding the team to a European quarter-final and a domestic cup final. United want a coach prepared to place academy development closer to the centre of the first-team project.
Olid’s work at Hearts suggests she could be well suited to that assignment. Taking a club from the bottom of the SWPL to its first championship is meaningful evidence of her ability to build.
Her expected arrival cannot answer whether United’s chosen model is ambitious enough for the modern WSL. Olid may be exactly the right coach for Manchester United’s new direction. The larger test is whether that direction gives her a realistic chance of succeeding.
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