Manchester United manager Eva Olid says it is “normal” to expect “constructive criticism” following their poor start to the Women’s Super League campaign.

Olid took over as manager in the summer after the departure of Marc Skinner and has suffered defeats in her opening two WSL matches.

Their 2-1 loss at London City Lionesses on the opening day of the season was followed by a 5-0 thrashing at home to rivals Chelsea last weekend.

Spaniard Olid, 41, who joined from Hearts, is trying to implement a new attacking style of play that focuses heavily on possession.

However, in their opening games, United have had just two shots on target and less than 40% possession in both matches, leading to criticism of their performances.

Asked if she has personally found the criticism difficult, Olid said: “Yes and no. That is part of the job. I don’t think it affects me.

“It is constructive criticism and that is normal. I understand that. The first two performances have not been good.

“We are the first to say we are not happy. The other part is the part I don’t understand – people wanting to hurt [us], but they are not going to.

“People that understand football know that the beginning and how you start does not define how you end the season. We know the direction and what we are doing will give us success in the long term.

“So yeah, I’m good. The only thing that is important for me is the players. I’m worried always that they need to feel good and strong, nothing else.”

It has been a tough start for United and it will not get easier this weekend when they travel to Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal on Saturday (17:30 BST).

The Gunners are unbeaten in 19 WSL games and United have not won there since November 2022.

Bottom of the table with zero points and one goal scored is not where United want to be – but is this part of the process to turn things around?

“Yeah, football is like life. You have good moments and difficult moments. I think all the teams in the season have a difficult moment. Ours is the start,” said Olid.

“We are learning as a team to grow because the difficult moments make you grow. Once we’ve passed this difficult moment and start [to build] momentum, I think we will be so much better.

“My main message [to the players] has been about them being themselves. They are not showing in the first two matches who they are and what they can do.”

Olid has urged her players to retain the defensive solidity they had built under Skinner, that led them to the Champions League quarter-finals.

She has previously called for patience, insisting United need time to adapt to her new style.

“They cannot forget what they were good at before. At the same time, little by little, we need to implement the new style,” she added.

“But it’s impossible to be doing everything. The players have been so focused and thinking a lot – overthinking maybe – trying to do everything and in the end, they don’t do anything because they are not expressing themselves like I know they can.”

Opposition manager, Arsenal’s Renee Slegers, says Olid has “had so little time” and she understands the challenge she is facing.

“As a coach it’s a decision you make – are you going to change things straight away or are you going to have another approach where, over time, you look to try to change things progressively?” said Slegers.

“That’s probably the balance for her. I don’t know what her philosophy is but I imagine it’s a challenge. I understand the disappointment from a fan perspective – but there has been so little time.”