Manchester United’s British forward Leah Galton (R) controls the ball during the Women’s French Cup … [+]
Five years after their formation, Manchester United Women will play their first-ever European tie against Paris Saint-Germain tomorrow and an ex-player who remains a fan favorite.
Dutch midfielder Jackie Groenen joined Manchester United in 2019 on the back of scoring the goal which put the Netherlands in that summer’s World Cup final. She represented the Red Devils for three seasons but their inability to qualify for the Women’s Champions League during her time there eventually led her to join regular European qualifiers, Paris Saint-Germain for a reported €150,000 ($159,000) putting her among the top twenty most expensive female players in the world.
On Tuesday, Groenen, and another former Manchester United player, defender Aïssatou Tounkara, will return to play against their old club in a tie that will decide which of the second-placed teams in either England or France last season will enter the lucrative 16-team group stage of the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Speaking to me last week, Leah Galton revealed to me that Groenen was immediately in touch with her former team-mates once the draw was made last month. “When it got announced, she messaged me and was just like, “I can’t wait to see you, we finally get to see each other again!” Obviously, we were really good friends at United and it was sad to see her leave so I’m excited to rekindle with her in Paris.”
A month before Groenen left Manchester United last summer, she played for them against Paris Saint-Germain in a pre-season tournament in Toulouse. The English side came out on top thanks to a late goal by captain Katie Zelem.
Galton recalls, “it was a really good game actually, it was very warm. I remember it being warm and in pre-season. We scored near the end of the game. I think they’ve had a lot of changes in the squad since then so it could be a very different team but I think it just gave us a good insight into how they play and their style of play, which is very intense and very physical.”
Ahead of the game last Friday, Paris Saint-Germain were able to make seven changes to their team for a French league match away to Saint-Etienne, and still win. Meanwhile, Manchester United chose to name an unchanged starting eleven for a pivotal Women’s Super League game at home to title-rivals Arsenal, a match in which they conceded a last-gasp equalizer.
LEIGH, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 06: Cloe Lacasse of Arsenal celebrates with teammates after scoring her … [+]
Head coach Marc Skinner was been criticized by supporters for not utilising the full strength of his squad but told me last week that we will rotate his players at some point as Manchester United face the first of three crucial games in nine days but will wait to see the reports of his medical team on the effects of playing such an intense game at the end of last week.
The second leg of the tie next Wednesday has been moved to the 47,929-capacity Parc des Princes. With many United fans set to travel to Paris, the record attendance for a women’s Champions League qualifying tie of 11,443, set when Real Sociedad played FC Bayern in San Sebastián, Spain last season, is set to be broken.
Galton hopes her parents will be among the crowd in France next week. “My mum and my dad are really keen to get out there, and I’d be really excited for them to get out there because I think, to share that experience with them would be massive so I hope that they can, I hope they can get the time off work and come and join me out there. I think it will be something I’ll never forget.”
After finishing fourth, and out of the Champions League quaifying positions for three consecutive seasons, Manchester United has waited a long time to have their first crack at European football. For their long-awaited continental debut to end before the group stage of the Champions League may feel anticlimactic but Galton insists it will not signify a failure for the team in only their sixth season as a professional club.
“I definitely don’t think it will define our season as a club. It will be hard to take if we get knocked out so early. I think obviously we are a bit inexperienced as a club in that area so it will be a good challenge for us and I think it will be good to see how far we can go and what we need to work on if things don’t work out the way we want them to. But I definitely don’t think it will affect our mentality going forward this year.”