Manchester United manager Marc Skinner says Grace Clinton must keep her sights set on enjoying football as the young midfielder continues to develop into a future England star.
The 21-year-old was back on the scoresheet on Tuesday evening, just as she had started England against Switzerland The midfielder’s 8th-minute goal was the difference in the 1-0 win over Switzerland, marking her fourth goal in six games for the Lionesses.
When he asked 90 minutes On Clinton’s development, Skinner was clear that the goal is for her to “just enjoy her football.”
“It’s about keeping it balanced,” Skinner said. “I think how we balance it is, first and foremost, not getting entrenched in expectations and everything around what it means to play. Manchester United and England”.
“She’s a good character, so it’s pretty easy from that point of view. It’s about balancing her expectations of herself because she’s a deep thinker. If we balance that, we’ll see a gradual rise.”
Clinton has become the talk of the town since his breakout season on loan with Tottenham Hotspur. The midfielder has started every game for the club Women’s Super League (WSL) since returning to Man United at the start of the 2024/25 campaign.
“We have a big habit in England of building up our players, only to try and cut them down. So it’s about keeping it balanced,” Skinner added.
Skinner was earlier asked about Clinton after the international break in October, where he scored the winning goal to get England over the line in a 2-1 win against South Africa. Skinner echoed his intentions to nurture his talent as he continues to develop.
“You know how we are in England? We’ll recognize talent, put it on a pedestal, and then we’ll try to knock it down,” he explained. “For me, what I think is really important is that you not only enjoy watching a great young player play soccer, but that she has fun playing soccer and that’s my job. My job is to keep Grace in this space.
“I think Grace’s priority is to improve as a footballer and continue to improve. I think sometimes there’s this rush to become the next superstar. We forget that she’s actually human. She just needs time to grow.”
