Manchester United have appointed Eva Olid as the new head coach of their women’s team following Marc Skinner’s surprise departure on Monday. The 40-year-old arrives in England after helping Hearts win a historic first Scottish Women’s Premier League title last season, and she has been selected to lead Manchester United into what the club sees as a new and different chapter.

Officially, Eva Olid has been named Manchester United head coach.

Olid’s appointment was confirmed on Wednesday morning, two days after Skinner’s unexpected exit. The 43-year-old, who had been the longest-serving manager in the Women’s Super League before leaving, agreed to mutually end his contract last week after first offering his resignation. His departure came during a slow and subdued summer transfer window, which has led to questions about how competitive United will be in the forthcoming WSL campaign, with the new season starting in less than a month.

It had been widely reported that the club wanted a manager with a strong record of developing players to replace Skinner, as a fresh direction built around promoting academy talent and young prospects begins to take shape. United identified Olid as the ideal candidate for that role, and she signed a two-year contract this week with the option of a further year.

Olid’s first words as Manchester United boss

Speaking after her appointment was announced, Olid said: “The opportunity to become head coach of Man Utd is a dream come true. The club has outstanding infrastructure and everything we need to achieve our ambitions. We have an excellent training facility, an academy that is already producing players capable of performing in a competitive first team and an exceptional group of support staff.

“There is already so much talent within our squad and I am excited to work with the players to support them to fulfil their immense potential. I am joining Manchester United at a really exciting time. There is a clear alignment in our shared vision for long-term success. I cannot wait to begin preparing a team that will make our incredible supporters proud.”

Matt Johnson, the club’s director of women’s football, added: “Eva is an outstanding coach with an incredible determination to succeed. Her remarkable achievements at Hearts showcased her ability to maximise the potential of individual players whilst also implementing an exciting style of football. We are delighted that she will now bring those qualities to Man Utd.

“Eva is the perfect coach to lead us into an exciting new era. She shares our commitment to developing exciting homegrown and young players, a tradition deeply embedded in our club’s history and culture, as well as improving established senior internationals, both of which form an integral part of our vision for long-term, sustainable success.”

Why Olid attracted Manchester United’s attention

Olid has spent the past five years in Scotland with Hearts, which has been her only senior coaching role so far. The Spaniard guided the club to a fourth-place finish in the 2022-23 season, beginning a four-year run of top-half finishes, reached the Scottish Cup final in 2024, and then led Hearts to their first SWPL title last season before leaving at the end of the campaign.

Young players were central to Olid’s teams in Scotland, and that has understandably appealed to Manchester United as they begin a phase in which they want talented prospects to sit at the centre of their plans. Making that work in the WSL will not be straightforward, with the SWPL generally featuring far more young, homegrown players than the league south of the border. Olid will need time to make that transition, but United appear prepared to give her that time.

More Manchester United decisions needed as the new WSL season approaches

Even with this shift in direction and Olid’s arrival, Manchester United still clearly need to make more signings this summer. So far, their only arrivals have been young defender Andrea Medina from Atletico Madrid and Janina Leitzig, who is set to provide back-up to first-choice goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce.

The exits of Leah Galton, Hannah Blundell, Millie Turner, Lisa Naalsund and Melvine Malard, with Gabby George seemingly likely to follow soon, mean there are plenty of gaps in this squad, even if academy talents are brought in. That was a major factor in the disappointing 2025-26 season, when United finished nine points adrift of the Champions League qualification places.