'Champagne going everywhere' - Man Utd players react to Women's FA Cup win

Manchester United captain Katie Zelem said that lifting the Women's FA Cup at Wembley on Sunday was more than she "dreamed of" upon re-signing for her childhood club six years ago.

Oldham-born Zelem was part of United's youth setup for the best part of a decade growing up but had to move on in order to start a senior career at a time when the club didn't operate a first-team squad. That all changed in 2018, with Zelem one of the original recruits after leaving behind Champions League football with Juventus. She then inherited the captaincy in 2019.

"To be captain of this club is one thing, but to lift a trophy at Wembley is a dream come true," the midfielder explained following United's landmark 4-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, a result which delivered an eagerly-awaited first major trophy.

This was a victory that was a long time coming for United, who last got their hands on silverware back in 2019 in the form of the second tier Women's Championship title. They were agonisingly close to winning the WSL and FA Cup last season, falling narrowly short to Chelsea in both, which perhaps served to make victory this time all the more sweet.

"Everyone was going wild, champagne going everywhere, beers going everywhere. The girls were so happy to finally get over the line," said Nikita Parris, reported in recent days to have rejected a bumper three-year contract in the United States last month in order to see out the season with United.

"We put the performance together as well as the goals. Last year [in the final against Chelsea], we had the performance but didn't have the goal," she added.

"Tooney set us off with a cracker of a goal, to score anything like that at Wembley is unbelievable," the forward continued, referencing Ella Toone's stunning breakthrough effort. "Rach [Williams] got us going and Lucia [Garcia]…how she plays is her personality, she's an electric bunny, the girl doesn't stop."

Toone's goal was one worthy of the occasion. But it was no fluke, revealing to club channel MUTV that she stays behind after training to work on shooting from distance. It wasn't even her first such goal in the FA Cup this season, netting from range in wins against both Newcastle United and Southampton in the early rounds of the competition.

"The girls know that I'm practising all the time, after training, on shots like that, shots from outside of the box and shots that I will take in games," she revealed.

"I felt confident as soon as it left my foot," Toone added to reporters later on.

FA Cup glory is, however, only half the story for United this season. Having run Chelsea so close in the WSL title race a year ago and registering one of the league's all-time highest points tallies, Marc Skinner's side have fallen away and are at risk of finishing fifth when the league campaign wraps next weekend. Given the juxtaposition between the elation of cup success and the disappointment of sliding down the table, Zelem described it as "bittersweet".

"It's not good enough for a Manchester United team to finish fifth and we want to be pushing for Champions League all the time," she explained. "But to be able to win [the final], add a trophy to the cabinet and get gold medals round our necks makes it bittersweet."

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