Eva Olid's Bold Vision for Manchester United in Women's Super League

Eva Olid wants Manchester United to stop tiptoeing around the Women's Super League and start tearing into it.

The new head coach, preparing for her first WSL match in charge on Friday away to London City Lionesses (19:00 BST), has delivered a blunt message to her squad: be brave, be bold, be attacking.

“The club wanted to play attractive football and be brave,” Olid said. “We know that can have risks but the club support me in that. They signed me for that.”

Doubts, a quiet window and a bold response

Olid arrives from Hearts, stepping into the role vacated by Marc Skinner after his summer departure. The handover has not been wrapped in fanfare. A subdued transfer window, one that fell short of many supporters’ expectations, has fuelled questions over whether United can realistically fight for a top-three finish.

Those doubts have not gone unnoticed.

“It's normal, no? It's normal to have people doubting,” Olid admitted. “I have felt the support a lot too.”

She leans on her work in Scotland as proof that early scepticism does not have to define a season.

“People that followed me in the last years with Hearts know I made something impossible possible, so I believe in what we are going to do,” she said. “It's not something you get in weeks but I believe with a little time you get impossible things.”

A clear identity, even if the edges are rough

Pre-season has not dazzled. Performances have been underwhelming, the rhythm still missing. Olid knows the first competitive outing will arrive before every detail of her philosophy is in place.

Yet her priorities are unmistakable.

“My ambition is attacking football. I focus the gameplans on how we can hurt the teams. All teams have weaknesses we can exploit,” she said.

The shift from last season’s approach will be obvious, even if not yet complete.

“This team will play the first match in the league and I want it to be as close as possible to what I want. The style of play is different to what we had last year,” she explained.

That kind of overhaul usually takes months, not weeks. Olid has chosen to be pragmatic without losing sight of her end goal.

“You can imagine it's not an easy task. What I did was put aside the principles of play that I thought was easier to change for the first match so we can compete.”

So the blueprint is clear. High on risk, high on ambition, with some of the more complex ideas parked temporarily to make sure United can still go toe-to-toe from day one.

On Friday night in London, the talking stops. The first real glimpse of Olid’s “impossible things” begins.