Manchester United Women Aim for League Cup Redemption with Awujo
Manchester United Women turn to the League Cup on Wednesday night with a season that already feels like it needs a reset – and with Simi Awujo quietly stepping into the spotlight.
United’s start has been bruising. Defeat to London City and a 0-5 hammering by Chelsea left early scars and serious questions. Then came Arsenal at the weekend, and with it a response: a far more disciplined, determined performance that earned a point and, crucially, a bit of belief back in the dressing room.
Now comes Sheffield United in the League Cup. A different competition, but not a minor one. Not for this squad.
Awujo’s voice growing louder
For Awujo, this tie carries extra weight. The Canadian midfielder scored her first league goal for United in that loss to London City, a bright personal moment in a difficult afternoon, and she is pushing for more minutes as the games come thick and fast.
She also brings something less obvious but just as valuable: language.
Raised in Georgia, Awujo learned Spanish as a child and has been using it to help knit together a diverse United squad. Speaking to the club’s website ahead of the game, she lifted the lid on how that plays out day to day.
“Yeah, Medi’s (Andrea Medina) quite out there,” she said. “I think it seemed quite easy for her to just mesh with everyone because she's just a good personality – lots of fun! But yeah, I do speak Spanish. I would say I'm proficient, I wouldn't say fully fluent just because I've never lived there or anything.”
That ability has already become a small but telling tool inside the camp.
“But I can have conversations with Medi and Rebe (Rebeca Bernal) as well now, in Spanish,” she added.
What started as a school subject grew into something more. Awujo explained that her interest in Spanish was first sparked in the classroom before she began picking up more through TV, turning a childhood curiosity into a useful footballing asset.
Chasing the one that got away
United know exactly what this competition can offer. They reached the League Cup final last season, only to be beaten by Chelsea. That defeat still lingers.
The objective this time is blunt and ambitious: go one better.
“As professionals that's always the goal, to win as much as you can – I don't think any of that has changed,” Awujo said. “Obviously, we're not in Champions League this year, the FA Cup hasn't started so I guess in terms of winning silverware the Players Cup is our focus as well as the league right now. Then obviously when the FA Cup comes around the same will apply for that, we're always striving to win the most games and win as much silverware as possible.”
No European football. No FA Cup yet. The League Cup and the league itself take centre stage. For a squad that expects to compete for trophies, this is not a side quest; it is a major route to silverware.
And there is one more twist to the Sheffield United tie. It falls on Awujo’s birthday.
A first League Cup win of the season. A push towards another final. Another step in her own United story. She will want this one to stick in the memory.
