Manchester United boss' new contract 'offer' rings alarm bells after INEOS vow

In a week where two Premier League clubs were hit with points deductions and Liverpool were eviscerated by Atalanta in the Europa League, it is Manchester United who have conspired to deliver what is arguably the most eyebrow-raising football story of the last seven days.

For months it has felt as if Marc Skinner, manager of the women's team since 2021, is on borrowed time. After taking the title race to the final day and reaching the FA Cup final last term, there is a sense his side have now veered drastically off course, with the Reds having had disappointing runs in both the Champions League and Continental League Cup and currently sitting 15 points off leaders Manchester City in the Women's Super League (WSL).

That there remains a chance of FA Cup glory this season offers some hope of salvation for Skinner but the revelation that a new contract could be on the cards for the 41-year-old is being viewed in some quarters as an indictment of the club's long-term ambitions. On Tuesday, The Athletic reported talks are ongoing between both parties as they endeavour to thrash out a new deal that would see Skinner stay in his post beyond this summer.

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Considering that banners calling for the manager's removal have been visible in United away ends up and down the country since the turn of the year, it feels like a bold and slightly perplexing choice for the club's decision makers to opt to extend his tenure at Leigh Sports Village - particularly as it was hoped the arrival of new part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe would signal a bright new dawn for a women's team that have, until very recently, been treated as something of an afterthought by one of Europe's most behemothic footballing institutions.

The INEOS chief has not gone into any great detail about his plans for Skinner’s side during any of his dealings with the press but there is certainly an argument that rewarding the Reds boss with a new deal would be in opposition with Ratcliffe's desire to make United the best in class in every department.

"Of course I want to stay," Skinner said when quizzed on his future in his pre-match press conference on Friday. "I'm at a club that, not only do I love the history of it, I love what is going to come in the future. It's a club that has fantastic fans, incredible fans. I want to build sustained success over a period of time. That's what the INEOS remit is as well. We want to build success over a long period of time. I'm absolutely on board with that.

"As soon as any updates are here we will let you know but my job remains firmly in the focus of the team and what we've got to do for the games coming up."

Indeed, this weekend's game is irrefutably the biggest of United's season, with the Reds set to host Chelsea in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. A trip to Wembley next month and the chance to yield what would be the club's first major piece of silverware would perhaps help enhance fan sentiment towards Skinner but even that may not be enough to mask what has been something of a calamitous campaign for the Reds.

Last term, United finished the season with 56 points: the third-highest tally in WSL history. They lost only twice and eventually missed out on the title by just two points, with Chelsea also narrowly pipping them to the FA Cup trophy.

It marked the first time the club had finished in the top three and therefore earned a European spot, with Skinner deserving credit for the significant progress made by his side. Fast forward to now, though, and the picture looks very different.

United are almost certain to miss out on a Champions League place this season and exited the continent's premier club competition in the first qualifying round. They have regressed in almost every single metric - with the alarming rate at which they are conceding goals having more than doubled from 0.55 goals per game to 1.28 - and have won just nine of their 18 league matches.

These are not statistics that particularly point to a club on the right path. And, while there's an argument that Skinner has credit in the bank based on what he achieved last term, it could also be debated whether rewarding mediocrity aligns with INEOS' overall vision for the club.

Of course, there are some caveats to United's drop-off in form. In January, Skinner asserted United need to be more aggressive in the transfer market if they are serious about challenging for Europe's top honours. "If we’re going to chase down Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City," he said, "we’ve got to continue to invest to the levels that they are."

Certainly, one look at a list of the 10 most expensive WSL transfers of all time will tell you United have not coughed up quite as much cash as some of their rivals, with summer signing Geyse the only Reds player to feature in that category. Chelsea, meanwhile, have four of the top ten while Man City have three.

Then there is the inescapable truth that United have failed in their mission to tie down some of their biggest names to new contracts in recent times. Alessia Russo and Ona Batlle, two of the Reds' star performers last term, both left in the summer on free transfers after protracted negotiations over new deals failed to bear fruit.

The fact goalkeeper and England No.1 Mary Earps could follow suit when her own contract expires in June seems to indicate the club have not learnt from their mistakes. Another mitigating factor out of Skinner's control is United's desperately bad injury luck, with three of the club's summer signings - Gabby George (ACL), Emma Watson (ACL) and Hinata Miyazawa (knee) - having spent much of the campaign on the sidelines.

It must also be noted that there has been significant disruption behind the scenes at the club, with the departure of assistant manager, Martin Ho, being keenly felt within Skinner's squad. Ho joined Norwegian side SK Brann on a two-year deal in July, while several other key personnel - including physiotherapist Ibrahim Kerem and performance analyst Luke Wright - have moved over to join Erik ten Hag's side.

With head of women’s football Polly Bancroft also set to leave this summer to take up a new job as Chief Executive of Grimsby Town, it's perhaps little wonder the Reds have so often appeared in flux on the pitch this term. And Skinner doesn't have to look too far for an example of the benefits of managerial continuity, with Man City currently reaping the rewards of sticking by head coach Gareth Taylor.

The Blues failed to qualify for the Champions League last season but kept faith in Taylor's ability to turn things around. He has repaid that faith by guiding City to the brink of their first league title since 2016 this season.

Still, it is hard to shake the feeling that a shake-up in the dugout would provide United with the best chance of success in the near future, even if United do manage to progress to the FA Cup final this weekend.

“Chelsea is probably the toughest challenge within football," Skinner said of Sunday's opponents, "especially in England." While that may be true, it could also be argued that convincing the sceptics of his own managerial abilities looks to be a pretty tough task for the United boss. At present, it seems, he is losing the fight.