MARC SKINNER says Manchester United getting involved in the new global seven-a-side women’s competition announced this week is “maybe an option.”

An announcement from World Sevens Football (W7F) on Thursday said its inaugural tournament is set to take place in Portugal in May, featuring seven-a-side matches on a field half the size of a typical pitch, with halves lasting 15 minutes.

When asked if it was something United might get involved in, boss Skinner said today: “I think it’s trying to do something different within the women’s game.

“I’m not sure whether it’s good or bad yet, because we don’t know all of the rules, regulations. I’m pretty sure the club would be a club that would probably be an interesting target for them to be put into a tournament like that.

“Those decisions will be made higher up the club, not from me, and consulted with the players. For me, is there merit to a tournament like that? If it helps other players that maybe are not going to the Euros, or something like that…I don’t think we should dismiss having a look at something like that.

“Whether it’s right or wrong is only on the welfare of the players. If players want to go and do something like that, I don’t see it being negative.

“But it has to be really thought out in all those processes and made sure the players are at the centre of it. If they are, and they want to do it, maybe it’s an option.”

Skinner, who was speaking at his press conference ahead of tomorrow’s Women’s Super League trip to Aston Villa, added: “I don’t want to liken it to this, but remember when you had Test match cricket and then you had T20s, it became an exciting, quick version of cricket.

“If that is something, and players are at the centre of it and it is welfare, and there’s a prize pot of that, for a club that is trying to push to make waves it might be a really enticing kind of conversation.

“We’ve been constantly talking about investment into the women’s game and I think if it’s something that is viable, that works well, and everybody is on board, then maybe we should embrace something, just different ideas – it’s OK to do that at times.”