FA Cup semi-final win could prove symbolic for Manchester United women as they seek Wembley debut

For a football club so synonymous with major finals over the years, it’s a strange anomaly and arguably something of an embarrassment for Manchester United that their women’s team have never played at Wembley Stadium. That could at long last be about to change, if they can live up to their favourites tag in Saturday’s Women’s FA Cup semi-final against Brighton and book a place in 14 May’s final.

It was 75 years ago, at the 1948 men’s FA Cup final, when Manchester United’s men’s team first played at the national stadium, and following their Carabao Cup triumph in February, their men have taken part in 55 matches at Wembley in total. Not all of those appearances were major finals, as that includes fixtures such as two Premier League away matches when Tottenham Hotspur temporarily played at Wembley between 2017 and 2019, plus several FA Cup semi-final defeats, but for the most part, it’s an impressive figure that represents the club’s long-standing success. With a thirst for silverware comes, naturally, a familiarity with Wembley.

That’s one reason why victory on Saturday over Brighton would be symbolic for the women’s club, and would set them a date at Wembley against either Aston Villa or holders Chelsea. It’s a trip that feels extremely overdue.

In Manchester United’s defence, only seven women’s clubs have played in cup finals at Wembley, which didn’t stage the final of the Women’s FA Cup until 2015 and has never played host to the Women’s League Cup final. But Manchester United’s delay in even having the possibility to play there was extended by the club’s own decision not to even have a senior women’s team for 13 years between 2005 and 2018, when they reformed and entered the second tier of the pyramid.

Their progress since then has been rapid, coming straight up in their first season and then immediately establishing themselves in the WSL’s top four, but their three main rivals have, so far, prevented them from lifting any major honours. In the eight FA Cup finals that have been contested since 2015, Chelsea (four wins) Manchester City (three) and Arsenal (one) have enjoyed a stranglehold over the cup.

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This term, Marc Skinner’s team have never had a better chance to write some history, as they fight for both the league and the cup. The Women’s Super League leaders host the top-flight’s bottom club on Saturday (5.15pm kick-off) at Leigh Sports Village – neutral venues are not used in the semi-finals of the women’s competition – and for whichever clubs wins, a first trip to Wembley for their women’s team awaits, because Brighton’s women are also yet to play under the famous arch. However, there is significantly less pressure on the Sussex club, with their main priority being staying in the WSL this term. The semi-final will be their first match since Melissa Phillips was appointed as their new head coach last week.

Despite his team having been 4-0 winners away against Brighton last time out, on 1st April, Skinner is refusing to be complacent, saying: “We have a really difficult semi-final to navigate first. We would love to get to a final, to compete in a final and to win finals going forward, but we’ve got a very difficult task ahead of us [against Brighton]. I want us to go and hunt any opponent that stands in the way of us and success, turn up our heat on every opponent, knowing that Brighton specifically will be very difficult to play against.”

Nonetheless, Skinner feels his team are now more battle-hardened to deal with big games than last term, adding, when asked about his side’s progression from last season’s trophyless, fourth-placed finish: “The secret is experience. We all know a coach can set the environment and the expectations, but the reality is, if a player doesn’t have the experience to accept their responsibility within a moment, then that moment can be lost. Our players are learning, they’re growing and they’re getting more experience in bigger moments about being ruthless, and that’s where I think you’re seeing the difference, that huge experience of us losing last season and then coming into this season.

“We’ve learnt from the last season, where we probably hit stumbling blocks and didn’t really have the mental resolve at that time to overcome that, or even really the ability to change the game like we can do this year, where we can inject some physicality into games, or some wide players, or trickery, so we’re able to adapt the shape, and I’ve been really pleased with the way the players have adapted to that.”