With cohesion, individual quality and now depth in this squad, United are set up for a big end to the season. This Sunday, they make their bow in the League Cup final, looking to dethrone holders Chelsea. The Red Devils then have six vital WSL games to go, knowing any slip-up will be costly in the race for Champions League football. Amid it all, there is actual Champions League football, with the Red Devils’ two-legged quarter-final against Bayern Munich to begin on March 24.
“Every game is like a final,” Park notes, but Sunday’s final always feels like a particularly big one because it’s the first silverware of the season. Win, and it gives you so much confidence to take into the rest of those big games. Lose, and picking yourselves up quickly is vital, or things could spiral.
“I think if you get into that final and you win something, you can almost use that as fuel, because you want to keep feeling that,” Park adds.
It’d be another big step in United’s journey if they could come out on top, too. It’s already been a huge season which has seen them take strides in Europe especially. To register just a second-ever win over Chelsea, in their 17th meeting, to lift their first League Cup would be a statement. And in Park, they have a special player, brimming with confidence, who can deliver the sort of moment that will be needed to do exactly that.