Marc Skinner says Manchester United "know where they are headed" but "need a little bit of calm" after a 0-0 draw with Aston Villa in the Women's Super League on Sunday.

United maintained their unbeaten start to the season but were not at their best against Villa as they struggled to create chances after a slow start to the match.

The Red Devils managed just one shot on target, which came through Ella Toone in the 73rd minute, with Villa having the better of the chances as they created 1.94 expected goals compared to the hosts' 0.62.

It was a third consecutive draw for United after winning their first three games of the league season, and Skinner admitted his frustration at the lack of wins in recent weeks.

"It's OK, I'm allowed to not be happy - just as they are," Skinner told BBC Sport.

"I was not happy because the game is fierce. At Manchester United, there is a massive expectation, and you have to be ready to hold yourself."

"We want to push up the table, qualify for Europe and win leagues. But we are a brand-new team. The number of players I have had to buy to try and close the gap, and the actual time we have had together, we have had to accelerate. Not many teams in the world have to do it that quickly.

"We need a little bit of calm, we know where we are headed."

At the full-time whistle, the team was booed while there were also chants of “Skinner out” from the fans at Leigh Sports Village, but Skinner remains undaunted.

"Part and parcel of being Manchester United manager, everyone can have their opinion," Skinner said about the jeers.

"That's the job. For me, what I know is I can deliver winning football for this club. We've won the FA Cup and we are still unbeaten, and you still get that opinion, which is fine by me.

"It doesn't deter me. It is about making sure our players are in the right space for a game of football."

Villa, meanwhile, are one of two teams still without a win in the WSL this season, though they did register their third point under Robert De Pauw.

While it was an improved showing from the Villans, they remain second from bottom in the table and the Dutchman expressed his disappointment at not being able to secure that elusive first victory.

"I am a little bit sick of good performances without the three points. That frustrates me still," De Pauw told Sky Sports.

"We are doing everything. We leave no stone unturned each week, but still, it doesn't happen. We have to keep believing, keep the faith, as Jurgen Klopp once said.

"We can fight and play good football. It is time to reward ourselves."

Antonio Conte was frustrated that VAR did not reverse a penalty decision against Napoli as they played out a 1-1 draw with Inter on Sunday.

Hakan Calhanoglu failed to convert the spot kick in question late in the game, with the Turkish international having equalised for the hosts after Scott McTominay's opener.

Despite the decision not affecting the result in the end, Conte criticised VAR for not overruling the referee's decision to penalise Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa for a foul on Denzel Dumfries. 

"Can they [VAR] only intervene when it suits them? A decision from the referee like this can transform a match and VAR cannot do anything about it," Conte told DAZN.

"Either VAR is there to correct errors or it is not. If there is an error, it has to intervene. It really angers me, but it does to all coaches. It has to intervene if there is a mistake.

"If there is VAR, it must be used to correct errors or show the referee situations that he did not see. If it's a clear error, and it was, then why should [referee Maurizio] Mariani be allowed to just do that."

Despite his frustration with refereeing decisions, Conte was satisfied with his team's performance, as they held strong against a spirited second-half display from the Italian champions.

"I said that we would not come here to just be sparring partners against the strongest squad in Serie A, so it was important for us to face them with strength, character, accepting duels all over the field," he said.

"On that score, I am very satisfied. It was not easy to play here. We all know that we are making improvements and working hard, otherwise, you don't come to San Siro twice and also against Juventus without defeat.

"The lads are proving themselves, though, of course, we could've done much, much more in terms of quality today. There were too many errors, a lot of technical errors, but I am sure there will be further improvements."

Napoli's point ensured they stayed top of Serie A heading into the international break, moving them to 26 points in what is shaping up to be a tight title race. Conte's side sit one point clear of Atalanta, Fiorentina, Inter and Lazio.

The final international break of 2024 is here, and we can safely say the Premier League is starting to take shape.

Opta's supercomputer now has Liverpool, who are five points clear at the top following their win over Aston Villa on Saturday, as the favourites to go on and win the title.

Manchester City lost a fourth straight game in all competitions as they went down 2-1 at Brighton, while Chelsea and Arsenal are third and fourth respectively after sharing the points.

When assessing the underlying metrics, it looks like Sunday's draw at Stamford Bridge was a fair result, but that was not the case across the board this weekend.

Here, we pick out the lucky winners and unlucky losers from matchday 11.

Lucky winners: Manchester United

Manchester United are now under new management, with Ruben Amorim officially starting as head coach on Monday. But interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy ensured he went out with a high as the Red Devils beat Leicester City 3-0 on Sunday.

However, it is fair to say United were rather fortunate to net three times at Old Trafford, with the data suggesting they did not even create chances worthy of one goal, never mind three.

United's expected goals (xG) was 0.69, the third-lowest total in the league this weekend and behind Leicester's 0.77.

Bruno Fernandes scored one and set up another on his 250th appearance for the club, either side of Victor Kristiansen's own goal, but from 13 shots, United, who had only 17 touches in Leicester's box, really did not create much in the way of quality opportunities.

Indeed, their attacking quality instead told, with Fernandes and Alejandro Garnacho finishing well. At the other end, Leicester failed to make their moments count, despite hitting the target with five of their six shots.

Spare a thought for Erik ten Hag, given when he was in charge, United's attack was underperforming. Now Amorim just needs to pick up where Van Nistelrooy left off...

Unlucky losers: Manchester City

Man City are suddenly the crisis club, having lost four straight games for the first time since August 2006. Pep Guardiola, meanwhile, has lost four games in a row in all competitions for the very first time in his managerial career.

Erling Haaland also lost a Premier League match in which he scored a goal for the very first time, having put City ahead before Joao Pedro and Matt O'Riley clinched the points for Brighton.

 

Brighton finished with 2.29 xG, so they did deserve to score at least twice. However, City can still consider themselves unfortunate, given their 2.22 xG was the third-highest of any team across the weekend.

Their post-shot expected goals on target (xGoT) also rose to 2.98, showing that Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen was on fine form.

City also created five big chances, missing four of them, and hit the woodwork once. That being said, they conceded eight big chances, with Brighton letting them off for six of those, so it was not a good day at the office for Guardiola.

Unlucky losers: Bournemouth

If Man City were unfortunate, then the team to have created the highest xG (2.61) this past weekend – Bournemouth – can consider themselves hard done by.

Andoni Iraola claimed his team were worthy of the three points against Brentford, despite the Cherries losing 3-2, and the underlying metrics suggest the Spaniard was fair in his assessment.

 

Only Tottenham (35 in their loss against Ipswich Town) had more touches in the opponent's box than Bournemouth's 34 at the Gtech Community Stadium, but Iraola's side were made to pay for some dismal finishing.

Their xGoT dropped to 1.68, while Brentford's rose from 1.48 xG to 1.84 xGoT – essentially, the level of finishing from Brentford's players increased the likelihood they would score, while Bournemouth's finishing was below what would have been anticipated based on the quality of chances they had. That is further backed up by the fact the Cherries only got three of their 15 attempts on target.

Simone Inzaghi was proud of Inter's second-half performance but believes they should have come away with all three points from their 1-1 draw with Napoli. 

Hakan Calhanoglu scored with a stunning strike to cancel out Scott McTominay's opener for Napoli, but missed a penalty for the first time in eight years.

He had previously never missed a penalty in Serie A, netting 17 in a row before Sunday.

"I congratulated the team, if there was one side that should've won, then it was Inter. The second half was dominated by us," Inzaghi told DAZN.

"We went behind on a set play situation where we should've done better, but we kept our heads and did not allow Napoli practically anything.

"We hit the woodwork twice, missed a penalty, so I don’t know what more we could've done."

While Inter dominated the second half, the strike duo of Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram were largely kept quiet.

Martinez managed just two shots, worth 0.24 expected goals (xG), hitting the target with neither, while Thuram did not manage a single attempt, though Inzaghi was still impressed by their displays.

"They worked hard for the team and kept us solid," Inzaghi said.

"As a coach, I have to leave the result aside and focus on the performance, which was excellent against a quality opponent."

With nearly a third of the Serie A season completed, the title race is shaping up to be tight with Napoli leading the way on 26 points. Atalanta, Fiorentina, Inter and Lazio, meanwhile, are all on 25.

"I said this would be a very balanced campaign and that is proving to be true, but I saw a wonderful Inter tonight," Inzaghi said.

"We could probably have made more of our chances, but let us not forget the strength of the side we were facing." 

Hansi Flick did not offer any excuses after Barcelona's poor performance in their shock 1-0 defeat away to Real Sociedad on Sunday evening.

Sheraldo Becker scored the only goal for the hosts in the first half, with Barca offering little while searching for a comeback. 

The defeat ended Barcelona's run of seven straight victories in all competitions, although they remain six points ahead of Real Madrid – who have a game in hand – at the top of LaLiga.

"Today was not our day," Flick told a press conference.

"I think we have to accept this result because they played decisively. It's clear, there are no excuses. We didn't create enough chances.

"We started well with the ball, I was happy, but then we started to suffer and their goal came. We also made some bad decisions and that's something we have to live with."

Barcelona had scored in every game they had played in all competitions this season until Sunday, although they did not even manage a shot on target at the Reale Arena.

It is just the second time they have failed to do so since at least the 2003-04 season, after a match against Malaga in September 2014.

Real Sociedad arguably could have won by a wider margin after creating 14 chances and generating 1.85 expected goals (xG). The Barcelona defence made plenty of errors, which was something that concerned Flick.

"The responsibility for the defeat is ours. We could and should have played much better," Flick said.

"We haven't held possession of the ball the way we wanted and suffered. But the games we have played before have been fantastic, and I appreciate what the team has done so far this season.

"We tried until the last second, united, and I told the team that. But today we weren't strong enough to deserve a better result."

Head coach Michel hailed Girona's resilience after they earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory at Getafe on Sunday, despite riding their luck at times. 

Getafe were the better side for much of the contest but Yangel Herrera's towering header in the first half was enough to seal victory for Girona, who were missing 12 first-team players due to injuries.

The visitors only had three shots in total, hitting the target twice, as they accumulated just 0.19 expected goals (xG). While Getafe registered 0.61 xG, they failed to test goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga, allowing Girona to clinch the win with a more clinical performance. 

"Today's performance was not our best, obviously, and everyone could see that, but you have to appreciate how the boys defended," Michel told DAZN.

"God knows how many crosses they attempted, they had eight shots, and we kept most off the target. That's great defending. With the only real chance we created in the game, it was a goal. We knew it was going to be difficult.

"They are a team that presses well, they have done it to all teams and that's why they were undefeated at home. We've been very competitive, as you need to be to win here."

Girona earned back-to-back league wins for the first time in more than two months, and sit 10th in LaLiga going into the international break. It was also an important win for them, having suffered a 4-0 defeat to PSV in the Champions League earlier last week.

Michel said he is hoping the two-week rest they will have in the international break will help them get some of their key players back from injury, such as Abel Ruiz, Arnaut Danjuma, Viktor Tsygankov or Yaser Asprilla, among others.

"That's our reality and that's why those were three very, very valuable points. The way the team is at the moment, we need to rest and get some of the boys back," Michel said.

"I think after the international break we're going to have, I hope, fingers crossed, more players available, and today it was very important to get a positive result."

Ruben Amorim enjoyed a triumphant Sporting CP farewell ahead of his move to Manchester United, then declared it was the right time for him to think of his own career.

Amorim will officially take charge of the Red Devils on Monday, with Ruud van Nistelrooy having led the team as interim coach since Erik ten Hag was sacked last month.

His glittering spell with Sporting ended with a 4-2 victory at Braga on Sunday, their 11th win in as many Primeira Liga matches this campaign.

Speaking to reporters at his post-match press conference, Amorim said: "It's difficult to summarise everything at this point. It was an incredible adventure. 

 

"I always seemed to have all the certainties, but at some stages I had many doubts, so I insist that none of this was achieved alone. I arrived in a complicated period. I am the one who says thank you to the Sporting fans. 

"I did what I could, I made some mistakes, showed some stubbornness, but I was always thinking about what was best for the team. 

"This time, it was the only time I thought of myself, but I had to. I felt that it was my time and my path. When I felt this, I had to leave, because I have to be full-time."

Amorim's first match in charge of United will be at Ipswich Town in the Premier League on November 24, with his first Old Trafford outing coming against Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League four days later.

Barcelona's seven-match winning streak was brought crashing to a halt on Sunday as Real Sociedad handed them a 1-0 defeat in LaLiga, courtesy of Sheraldo Becker's goal.

Becker's first-half strike was enough to deal Hansi Flick just his second league loss in charge of the Blaugrana, as they allowed title rivals Real Madrid to make up ground at the summit.

Becker beat Flick's aggressive offside trap in the 33rd minute, racing onto a Luka Sucic header before slotting a tidy finish just inside the post.

With star winger Lamine Yamal absent due to a muscle injury, Barcelona struggled for chances after Robert Lewandowski saw an early strike chalked off for offside following a VAR review.

In truth, La Real were unfortunate not to win by a greater margin. Mikel Oyarzabal missed a glorious chance following good work from Takefusa Kubo just before half-time, with the home skipper also drawing Inaki Pena into action in the second period. 

They ultimately did not need a second goal, however, and the victory takes them eighth in LaLiga with 19 points, six adrift of the top four.

Barcelona still lead the standings on 33 points, six ahead of Real Madrid, who have a game in hand in second, while Atletico Madrid are third on 26 points.

 

Data Debrief: Blaugrana fire a blank

Barcelona could have no complaints about the result on Sunday, having failed to register a single shot on target.

It is just the second time they have failed to do so in LaLiga since Opta records began in 2003-04, after a goalless draw with Malaga in 2014 under Luis Enrique.

After scoring 29 goals across a seven-match winning run that included routs of Real Madrid (4-0), Bayern Munich (4-1), Sevilla (5-1), Young Boys (5-0) and Red Star Belgrade (5-2), the result represents a harsh reality check for Flick's team.

Hakan Calhanoglu went from hero to villain as Inter drew 1-1 with Serie A title rivals Napoli, scoring a stunning equaliser then missing a late penalty. 

Inter had fallen behind against the run of play in the 23rd minute, with Scott McTominay continuing his fine form by poking home from close range after a Napoli corner was flicked on.

Two minutes before the break, Calhanoglu equalised with a powerful strike from outside the box, which beat Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret before nestling in the top corner.

The Turkey international, who had scored 17 successive spot-kicks in the league for Inter, then had the chance to win it in the 74th minute after Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa fouled Denzel Dumfries.

However, he left San Siro in stunned silence when he hit the post from 12 yards, ensuring the two Scudetto contenders had to settle for a point apiece.

Napoli top the table with 26 points from 12 games, while Inter sit fourth with 25, with the Nerazzurri also behind Atalanta and Fiorentina on goal difference.

 

Data Debrief: Nothing to separate title rivals

Napoli may have retained their slender lead at the top of Serie A, but their failure to take all three points ensured Atalanta and Fiorentina ended the matchday two points closer than they started it.

The Partenopei have gone two straight games in Serie A without winning for the first time under Conte, having also lost 3-0 to Atalanta last time out. 

They have, however, remained unbeaten in their last two games against Inter when starting the matchday top of Serie A (one win, one draw), after two such defeats versus the Nerazzurri. If the teams are to go head-to-head for the title, this could prove an important point.

Roma have parted company with boss Ivan Juric, the second head coach the Giallorossi have sacked already this season.

Juric took charge in September, becoming their third permanent boss in the space of eight months when he succeeded Danielle De Rossi, who himself took the reigns after Jose Mourinho was fired in January.

However, he failed to inspire an upturn in their fortunes, with Sunday's 3-2 defeat to Bologna at the Stadio Olimpico being their fourth in their last five league matches.

That is more losses than they suffered in their previous 13 Serie A outings (four wins, six draws, three defeats). Since the start of matchday eight, only Como (one) have earned fewer points than the Giallorossi's three.

Sitting 12th in Serie A, this is their joint-worst start to a campaign in the last 20 years, having also taken 13 points from their first 12 matches in 2004-05.

"We would like to thank Ivan Juric for his hard work these past weeks," Roma said in a statement.

"He handled a difficult environment with the utmost professionalism, and for that we are grateful...

"The search for a new head coach has already begun and an announcement will be made in the coming days."

 

Reports in Italy have suggested Roberto Mancini, who left his role as Saudi Arabia head coach earlier this month, is locked in negotiations with the club and could take the reins.

Roma face a challenging set of fixtures after the international break, as they visit Scudetto contenders Napoli on November 24, before going to Tottenham in the Europa League and hosting high-flying Atalanta in the league.

The Giallorossi's owners, the Friedkin Group, are currently locked in talks to purchase Farhad Moshiri's controlling 94% stake in Premier League club Everton.

Rangers boss Philippe Clement called on his team to show greater ruthlessness after they were made to work for a 1-0 win over Hearts in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

Cyriel Dessers put the Gers ahead after just six minutes at Ibrox, diverting James Tavernier's effort past visiting goalkeeper Craig Gordon.

However, Clement's team failed to build on that quick start and inched over the line amid a tense atmosphere, moving back to within nine points of pacesetters Celtic and Aberdeen.

Speaking after the game, Clement acknowledged his players are fatigued after a gruelling run of fixtures but added they must start taking their chances.

"We made too many wrong choices with the ball and became too sloppy," Clement said. 

 

"It's the end of a very busy period, though, with a lot of travelling and they're all human beings, not robots.

"We missed scoring the second goal and we know that until you get that goal the other team stays in the game, so I want us to kill the belief of the opponent faster.

 "I'm very satisfied with the result and the deserved three points. We didn't show the same quality in the second half and we didn't finish off the game. We had a few chances, but it stays nervous until the last second."

Rangers host Dundee United after the international break, while Celtic visit Hearts and Aberdeen travel to St. Mirren.

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone was proud of how his players dug deep to earn their fourth straight win in all competitions, beating Real Mallorca 1-0 in LaLiga.

Julian Alvarez scored for the seventh time since his arrival from Manchester City as Los Colchoneros earned a hard-fought away win on Sunday.

The win took them third in the table, just one point behind second-placed Real Madrid and seven behind leaders Barcelona.

Simeone said his side had not let Wednesday's last-gasp 2-1 win over Paris-Saint Germain in the Champions League go to their heads as he praised their defensive work.

"The players made a huge effort and worked hard after our game in Paris; it wasn't easy to get away from all the praise they got and work with humility to defend all the crosses that Mallorca make in every game," Simeone said at a post-match press conference.

"In football you always live for today, as in life; what came before, what you enjoyed yourself, what you did... they are just memories. You have to deliver it here and now, it's the reality of life, the day to day.

"In the first half we lacked more collective play, in the second half it was different, we competed better in the opposition's half and after the goal we had our chances to go out with a bigger win."

Simeone heaped particular praise on Alvarez, adding: "I don't follow their numbers and I don't care about it but I love him.

"He has personality, class, humility, hard work and goals. Let's hope he continues in this vein of form because that's what we were hoping for.

"I don't dwell on results but in the last few games I can see a clear idea. We won a Copa del Rey match, then in LaLiga against Las Palmas, at PSG on Wednesday and today once again we gave joy to our fans, which is what it's all about." 

 

Yangel Herrera's header late in the first half proved enough for Girona to see off Getafe 1-0 on Sunday.

It means Girona have won back-to-back LaLiga games for just the second time this season.

Herrera headed home in the 42nd minute of a match devoid of much in the way of attacking quality from either team.

Indeed, there were just 11 shots throughout, with Getafe having eight and Girona three, with the hosts failing to get any of their attempts on target.

Between them, the teams combined for just 0.52 expected goals (xG) - 0.33 for Getafe and 0.19 for Girona.

The result lifted struggling Girona to 18 points and into ninth place, with Getafe 17th on 10 points.

Data Debrief: Heads up for Herrera

Herrera's goal was his second in the league this season, with his first having also been a header.

Only Thierno Barry (three) has scored more headed goals in LaLiga this term.

Getafe, meanwhile, have won only one of their 13 matches in LaLiga in 2024-25, which matches their worst record at this stage of a season, set in 2021-22.

Mikel Arteta said Arsenal must not accept the standards they showed defensively for Chelsea's equaliser in Sunday's 1-1 draw.

Pedro Neto slammed in from distance at Stamford Bridge, 10 minutes after Gabriel Martinelli had put the Gunners ahead.

Arsenal squandered a golden chance late on, when Leandro Trossard nudged wide from William Saliba's cross, leaving Arteta rolling on the touchline in frustration.

But Arteta, who believes Arsenal "dominated" Chelsea despite the Blues registering 17 shots and 1.28 expected goals (xG), singled out the defending for Neto's equaliser as particularly frustrating.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Arteta said: "The disappointment of not getting three points is bigger [than being satisfied] and it will probably be bigger after watching it back.

"I think we dominated them, we were the better team in many phases and situations in the game and after going ahead, very disappointed in the way we conceded.

"It was so poor. It is not [at] our standards and we don't accept [it].

"It is a second phase set piece and we were disorganised. We didn't reorganise quickly enough and you can't allow the pass that way. You need the quality of Neto to do it but our standards were not good enough."

Arsenal have gone four consecutive Premier League games without a win for the first time since April 2023 (D2 L2); the Gunners had picked up all three points in 21 of their previous 25 league matches before this (D3 L1).

This was the fourth time that Arsenal have faced 15+ shots in a Premier League game this season, already twice as many times as they did so across the whole of the 2023-24 campaign (twice).

Arteta was at least buoyed by the return to fitness of Martin Odegaard, who assisted Martinelli on his first appearance since September. Declan Rice, who missed Wednesday's loss to Inter in the Champions League, also played despite injury concerns.

 

"[He] has been out for six weeks and barely trained with the team," Arteta said of Odegaard, who played the entire match.

"To be able to play at this level in the Premier League tells you how much he looks after himself and the leadership and character he has. Everything flows better with players like this. We clicked much better. You could see everything was flowing but again it is about winning.

"What we have found is that every day we have had to change something big, because we've had problem after problem.

"Normally the team goes down but this team has unbelievable energy and spirit to play."

The draw left Arsenal in fourth, nine points back from Premier League leaders Liverpool heading into the final international break of 2024.

Chelsea did not get the result they wanted but Enzo Maresca believed his team made a statement by fighting back to draw with Arsenal.

Pedro Neto's first Premier League goal for the Blues saw Chelsea restore parity in the 70th minute of Sunday's clash at Stamford Bridge.

Gabriel Martinelli had put the Gunners ahead 10 minutes earlier, and Leandro Trossard squandered a great chance for Arsenal with the final kick of the game.

Chelsea finished with more shots (17 to 13) and a higher expected goals (1.28 to 0.99), and Maresca was satisfied with their performance.

"I enjoyed it, absolutely. The performance was good," he told BBC Sport.

"We know them quite well and we competed pretty well. The performance is very important for us in this moment and it was good. We can rest now and go again.

"The performance from Pedro [Neto] was very good. We played in the way we wanted to, brave, and try and play from the back always.

"It is the way we want to do things. We try and play face-to-face against every team. We are Chelsea, so it is important to send this message."

Neto has now either scored (two) or assisted (one) in each of his last three Premier League starts against Arsenal, with Sunday's goal ending a run of 17 league appearances in a row without him finding the net.

His goal was his first from outside the box in the Premier League since January 1, 2020.

"We wanted to win, but we knew we had hard work in front of us because they are a good team," he told Sky Sports.

"We came to win, so we're not as happy as we wanted to be, but we didn't want to lose and it's a good point against a good team.

"We read the game well. We had moments we could have been better but we've done a good job and we want to keep improving at this level."

The draw ensured Chelsea will end a day in the top three places of the Premier League table for the first time since the final day of the 2021-22 season, when they finished in third.

They face Maresca's former club, Leicester City, after the international break.

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