'Abuse by fans spurred me on' - Man Utd 'icon' Rachel Williams admits negative reaction to her arrival at club acted as motivation

Williams joined the Red Devils in the summer of 2022, a transfer which was criticised by a number of fans. After only four goals scored in the previous season for Tottenham, they were not convinced by what the striker could bring to the table.

However, in the two years since, she has certainly endeared herself to the Man Utd faithful. That has mostly come from her brilliance as a super sub but she also delivered as a starter in May's FA Cup final, scoring the second goal in a 4-0 win over Spurs that gave the women's team its first major trophy.

After that game, Man Utd boss Marc Skinner said: "Do you remember all that rubbish that we got when we signed her? Well, she’s turned that around, hasn’t she? She’s a fantastic footballer and more importantly a fantastic human and I hope she goes down as an iconic player for Manchester United."

Speaking at the Women's Super League's season launch media day this week, Williams was asked if she felt like she'd earned that status. "I don't know. I don't know. Probably like in women's football, if he had said in women's football, I could be, I'd still be shy and embarrassed by it," she replied. "I got a lot of abuse by fans when I first joined which spurred me on even more to go, ‘Right, you're going to love me’. I’ve had a lot of messages about, ‘Am I staying number 28? Am I staying at the club?’ I don't know if I'm a Man Utd legend after two seasons but if he wants to give me that title, I’ll take it!"

The 36-year-old signed a two-year deal when she arrived in 2022 but Man Utd activated the option for an extra year in that contract because of her performances. "I think there were a lot of people happy, which is a nice feeling because you never want to not feel wanted, so to feel valued and wanted, especially by the fans, it's one of the biggest honours," she said.

Williams will hope to produce more magical moments in the 2024-25 season, with the WSL returning on September 20 as reigning champions Chelsea face Aston Villa. Man Utd kick their campaign off the following day, at home to West Ham.