Aston Villa 2-3 Man Utd: Player ratings as Red Devils earn seismic WSL win in stoppage time

Business

Manchester United left it as late as could be to beat Aston Villa on Friday night and move six points at the top of the WSL.

Marc Skinner’s side were continually frustrated by the league’s premier giant-killers and twice trailed at the Bescot Stadium, but return home with all three points to strengthen their title hopes.

Carla Ward’s charges put up a spirited fight and were superior for long stretches but were undone by the visitors‘ final attack.

Though Man Utd dominated the opening stages, Aston Villa took the lead after nine minutes. A corner from Lucy Staniforth was met by the leaping Rachel Daly, who beat Maya Le Tissier to the ball and headed it into the far corner with power and precision.

The visitors weren’t behind for long though and found an equaliser soon after. Ona Batlle sprinted clear down the right and delivered an early cross, which evaded Alessia Russo but was tapped in by the waiting Leah Galton.

Man Utd continued to look weak defending corners even as the first-half settled back down, with Anna Patten rattling the bar.

From a corner of their own though, Marc Skinner’s side nearly went ahead. A goal-mouth scramble saw the ball cleared off the line, before Hannah Hampton produced a stunning save to deny Katie Zelem from close range.

Shortly before the break, Aston Villa found themselves back in front. Mayumi Pacheco’s cut-back was met by Daly, who looped a half-volley up and into the bottom right corner.

Hayley Ladd thought she had levelled the score minutes later when she nodded in from a corner, but the referee had already blown for a perceived foul on Hampton and Aston Villa went into the break one goal to the good.

After the interval, Russo started to get more involved as Man Utd went in search of a second equaliser, notably firing narrowly over from 20 yards just before the hour mark.

From the resulting goal kick, Daly nearly grabbed her hat-trick. Jordan Nobbs shifted the ball wide to Kenza Dali, and her cut-back was thundered against the crossbar by the ex-Houston Dash star.

And at the end of a frantic back-and-forth few minutes, Man Utd were level once again. Hannah Blundell’s deep cross was nodded in by Nikita Parris, bringing the Red Devils back into the contest.

Skinner chose to throw on an entirely new forward line for the final 15 minutes in an attempt to find a winning goal, and they carved out a glorious opportunity late in the day. Martha Thomas burst into the penalty area and was caught in two minds as to whether she should cross or shoot, with the ball eventually searing past Hampton’s post.

With essentially the game’s final action, Millie Turner headed Man Utd into their first lead of the evening, towering above several defenders and finishing Zelem’s in-swinging free-kick.

GK: Hannah Hampton – 7/10 – Produced some excellent saves and was the more convincing of the two England goalkeepers.

RB: Sarah Mayling – 6/10 – Did well to keep Galton quiet for long stretches.

CB: Anna Patten – 5/10 – Stepped into midfield to win the ball back and create various overloads.

CB: Danielle Turner – 6/10 – Confident and composed with her defending.

LB: Mayumi Pacheco – 7/10 – Excellent at both ends of the pitch.

RM: Laura Blindkilde Brown – 6/10 – Slotted into a new role seamlessly, linking play and always getting involved.

CM: Kenza Dali – 6/10 – Often Aston Villa’s source of flair and creativity.

CM: Lucy Staniforth – 6/10 – Anchored the midfield well and shuttled across plugging gaps.

CM: Ruesha Littlejohn – 5/10 – Showed fight and grit in the midfield battle.

LM: Jordan Nobbs – 6/10 – Tucked inside in the first half but played more like a traditional winger after the break. Both jobs were half-decent.

CF: Rachel Daly – 9/10 – Up to 17 goals in the WSL this season, level with Bunny Shaw.

Substitutes

Alisha Lehmann (63′ for Littlejohn) – 5/10

Manager

Carla Ward – 7/10 – Aston Villa played without fear and looked as though they believed they were the league leaders‘ equals.

GK: Mary Earps – 5/10 – Didn’t have much of a chance of saving either goal, in fairness.

RB: Ona Batlle – 7/10 – An incredibly useful and pacy outlet.

CB: Maya Le Tissier – 5/10 – Beaten by Daly for the opener but it’s hardly as if she was outmuscled or out-jumped.

CB: Aoife Mannion – 5/10 – Occasionally herself into challenges without much control.

LB: Hannah Blundell – 7/10 – Quiet for the most part but the delivery for Parris‘ equaliser was exquisite.

CM: Hayley Ladd – 7/10 – Weaved her way through midfield every now and then.

CM: Katie Zelem – 8/10 – Provided thrust and energy from the centre of the park, particularly in the opening stages. Came up with the late, late assist.

RM: Nikita Parris – 7/10 – A little sloppy but was always causing danger one way or another.

AM: Ella Toone – 5/10 – Failed to have a meaningful impact on the game.

LM: Leah Galton – 7/10 – A fast start which yielded a goal but was pinned down for the most part.

CF: Alessia Russo – 6/10 – Couldn’t get a clear sight of goal but did endeavour to get more involved in the game someway somehow.

Substitutes

Rachel Williams (77′ for Russo) – N/A

Martha Thomas (77′ for Parris) – N/A

Lucia Garcia (77′ for Galton) – N/A

Millie Turner (87′ for Mannion) – N/A

Vilde Boe RIsa (90′ for Toone) – N/A

Manager

Marc Skinner – 7/10 – Emptied his bench trying to find answers to Aston Villa’s stubborn defending and eventually his tinkering paid off.

Player of the match – Rachel Daly (Aston Villa)