Manchester United defeated Liverpool 1-0 in their final game of the season but missed out on the WSL title.
It was a quiet game with chances at a premium throughout, but Lucia Garica’s second half strike was the difference between the two sides.
The result confirms United’s second place finish, while Liverpool finish seventh on their return to the league.
Story of the Game
The gameplans of both sides were on show in the early phases of the game.
United looked to control the game through the midfield axis of Katie Zelem and Vilde Bøa Risa before they would feed in their dangerous attacking players.
Liverpool were compact out of possession and often looked for the run of Shanice van de Sanden to get in behind the United defence.
For the majority of the first half, it was a sluggish tie that really lacked the intensity of a derby.
United had a handful of half chances through Nikita Parris and Leah Galton, but there was nothing to test Rachel Laws in the Liverpool net.
The Reds themselves did not look threatening in the first half, but if anything was going to happen for them, it would go through Missy Bo Kearns, who looked dangerous at times in the first half.
As the game chugged into added time, United began to turn up the heat.
A cross from Ona Battle bounced off the top of the crossbar before Liverpool scrambled it away.
A minute later, Parris raced onto Zelem’s through ball and hit it on the volley, but Laws was at full stretch to tip her shot onto the bar.
As the first half drew to an end, yes United had the better of the chances, but a draw was certainly the fair result heading into the break.
Second Half
Much of the second half followed the first half act. A scrappy game with players going down with an abundance of players going down with knocks and injuries.
Liverpool fans were also making United players and fans aware of their fate, as they chanted “2-0 to the Chelsea girls”, much to the chagrin of the United contingent.
The home side looked good for a brief period and fashioned out their best chance with 20 minutes remaining.
Natasha Dowie made a darting run down the wing before sending a low cross into the path of Emma Koivisto, but Mary Earps parried the ball away from danger.
However, United did eventually break the deadlock. Maya Le Tissier’s searching ball over the top found Lucia Garcia in the box.
The Spaniard was given acres of space by the Liverpool defenders, and she punished them by flicking the ball up and volleying into the bottom corner.
United winning, but with Chelsea dominating Reading, the goal was merely an academic one.
Goalmouth action was pretty scare after Garica’s goal.
The best chance fell to Rhiannon Roberts, who was making her final appearance in a Liverpool shirt, but her volley flew over the bar. The Welsh Wizard knows she could have done much better.
Three minutes before the end, Alessia Russo was subbed off to rapturous applause from the United fans, was this the last time she would appear for the Red Devils?
That of course will be a problem heading into next season. As far as this campaign is concerned, United end on a high, but they just fell short in their quest for WSL glory.
Player of the Match – Katie Zelem
There weren’t really any standout performances on the pitch today, but Zelem was solid throughout.
With the trickery of Kearns to deal with, she snuffed out any threat she posed, especially in the second half.
She won the ball back every time and always looked to play forward. A good display from the captain.