Olivia Smith felt like she had let her side down after her red card in Arsenal Women’s 1-0 Subway Cup loss to Manchester United, head coach Renee Slegers revealed.

The Canadian winger was booked 13 minutes in for a challenge in which she looked to have got some of the ball, before leaving the referee with little choice when she bundled Julia Zigiotti Olme over with 28 minutes to go.

Elisabeth Terland’s first half goal was the difference on a rainy night at Meadow Park as United reached their first League Cup final.

“I just met her shortly after the game,” Slegers said of Smith. “She's very upset, she's not happy with it. She feels like let the team down, but we are in it together. It's very tough lessons for her, but of course we support her and help her forward.”

Asked about the red card itself, Slegers said: “I have to watch it back properly, I've seen one clip quickly. The first one I'm not sure, I couldn't see it clearly. It looked like Liv was on the ball first, but I'm not sure. 

“But of course, if you are on the yellow, you have to have that in the back of your mind when you play. Liv plays on the edge. She doesn't shy away from physical moments, from duels. She draws a lot of fouls and cards for opposition. Now it was the other way around, and that's her style of play. 

“And it was a really tough lesson for her today and for the team, because obviously we go down with ten players, which makes it much harder if you're 1-0 down. But then, with 10-to-11, we still create a good amount of chances, which I'm very proud of, but of course it's a hard situation.”