Nick Cushing praised for instant impact on return to Manchester City

It’s been a rollercoaster week for Manchester City and their interim manager Nick Cushing, marked by their emphatic victory 2-0 victory over a formidable Chelsea side, putting them on good stead to progress to the Women’s Champions League semi-final.

Only five days previously, City had been up against the same Chelsea side in the Women’s League Cup final where they came up short in an agonising 2-1 loss with a late own goal by Yui Hasegawa to add insult to injury.

However, this didn’t deter Cushing and his side from rallying and getting one back over Chelsea, handing them their first defeat of the season in 31 games.

On the night, City ran out comfortable 2-0 winners at the Joie Stadium thanks to a brace from Dutch international Vivienne Miedema.

Chelsea Women’s team. Credit: Naomi Baker/ GettyImages

The City side should get credit for a spirited and dominant performance, but it’s Cushing who deserves the plaudits for the team’s turnaround, after his return to the club a little over a week ago. There is limited time for celebration as he and his team have still to face Chelsea twice more because they are only halfway through facing the WSL champions in four consecutive games.

Cushing has a vast and respected history at Manchester City Women. He joined the club in 2008 and proceeded to work his way up the ranks over the following 11 years before his departure for New York F.C in 2019.

In his tenure at City, he won five major honours including a WSL in 2016.

His recent return was seen as something of a hero’s homecoming as he stepped in to replace the recently sacked Gareth Taylor on short notice.

Nick Cushing has returned to Manchester City Women’s. Credit: Adam Davy/GettyImages

Ex-City midfielder Izzy Christiansen hailed Cushing’s leadership as a “tactical masterclass”.

However, Cushing is downplaying the praise and insisting the foundations were in place and it’s down to belief.

“For me it was about making sure we could compete against the top teams. To win trophies, you have to beat the best,” said Cushing

“We have to be a threat in every phase of the game and have that presence. It’s how you win tight and critical games.”