Manchester United Women were punished for not getting the basics right in their derby defeat against Manchester City, according to manager Casey Stoney.
In a fierce contest between the Barclays FA Women’s Super League rivals, City came out on top thanks to goals from Lucy Bronze, Lauren Hemp and Caroline Weir.
A further worry for United came when Leah Galton, who has provided much of her side’s creativity this season, was forced off just before the break with an injury.
That was one of several concerns for Stoney, who has now seen United suffer back-to-back league defeats.
“Everybody is bitterly disappointed after that,” Stoney said. “We didn’t create nearly enough chances, and that’s something we know we can do a lot better at. We didn’t defend set pieces well enough and that’s a concern.
“We’ve just got to be showing more desire in some of those situations. We didn’t always get the basics right and when that happens you get punished like we did tonight.
"We made the wrong decisions when we were on the ball, and in the end the game has got away from us.
"We didn’t put the pressure on enough, but I won’t use the cold weather or the conditions as an excuse for that.”
The result saw United drop to third in the table, one point behind their conquerors City and three adrift of leaders Chelsea.
With seven league games remaining, the United boss stressed that a top-three finish remains the primary aim.
“Don’t forget we never had any aspirations to win the title from the start of the season,” she said. “But qualification for the Champions League is still very much in our hands.
“It’s about needing to improve, though. That final touch, that final ball, wasn’t really good enough tonight.”
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