Manchester United Women manager defends players over free-kick controversy

Marc Skinner, the Manchester United Women manager, has defended his team’s behaviour after they produced a controversial free-kick routine in Sunday’s victory at Leicester City.

Two United players, Elisabeth Terland and Millie Turner, stood in front of Leicester goalkeeper Janina Leitzig and made deliberate and sustained attempts to obstruct her view at an attacking free-kick as she attempted to set up the defensive wall.

The pair stood just a few inches away from Leitzig and even lifted their arms in an attempt to block her from seeing the action on the pitch. The two United players were eventually told to move away by the referee.

Footage of the incident, recorded from the stands at the King Power Stadium, has since been viewed more than one million times on social media, with the two United players facing criticism online.

Asked about the free-kick routine after the match, Skinner said: “There’s a very tall goalkeeper so you’ve got to try and stop their vision, it’s something our set-piece coach dreamt up and you’re allowed to do it.”

Leitzig, a former German youth international, is 6ft tall.

The victory ended a three-game winless run for Skinner’s side, with Terland and Celin Bizet both scoring for United. They are now fifth in the Women’s Super League table, level on points with fourth-placed Arsenal.

The result eases some of the pressure on Skinner, who was booed by some supporters the previous weekend following a goalless draw with Aston Villa. There were also calls of “Skinner out” at full-time after that game.

“The reality is we’ve just got really passionate fans who want to win football games,” Skinner said after the victory at Leicester. “Once we sparked them, their engine was fantastic today.

“The energy from them was really good throughout the game. We have to entertain them. They pay their hard-earned money.”