Manchester United manager Marc Skinner has expressed optimism that England midfielder Ella Toone will be available for Sunday's crucial Women's Super League clash at Tottenham Hotspur.
Toone has been sidelined since the end of December with a hip injury, which also caused her to miss United's Champions League quarter-final run and two England camps. However, with United needing wins in their final three league matches—including a season-ending trip to Chelsea—to secure a Champions League playoff spot, Skinner is hopeful of her return.
"Tooney will train [on Friday]," Skinner said. "We are hopeful she may be involved this weekend, which would be fantastic."
The manager also confirmed that Sweden full-back Anna Sandberg is available after a two-month absence with a knee injury, and striker Ellen Wangerheim has recovered from a shin problem that kept her out for a month.
United have endured a difficult season, losing in the League Cup final, FA Cup final, and Champions League quarter-finals, as well as a recent WSL defeat to Manchester City at Old Trafford. The results have intensified scrutiny on Skinner, whose contract runs until 2027, with some fans questioning whether he has taken the team as far as he can.
Skinner, now the longest-serving WSL manager, defended his record but declined to look beyond the season's end.
"You enter a job like Man Utd and of course you are open to scrutiny," he said. "But we also live in a world where there is a constant 'look at the negative side.' Actually, the positive side is we have created history at this club and we have to continue to do so."
"My job is to prepare my team for these next three games and to try and win them. Regardless of what people think, I know who I am, I know what I do and I know what our focus will be. I am ready to take on the challenge of these next three games and get my team to do the same. After that, who knows what happens?"