Emma Hayes warns about ‘inappropriate’ relationships within football squads

Emma Hayes has branded romantic relationships between coaches and their players, and even between team-mates, as “inappropriate”.

Amid accusations relationships between coaches and their players were “rife” in women’s football, Chelsea manager Hayes said they had no place in the sport.

“I think player-coach relationships are inappropriate, player to player relationships are inappropriate,” she said, before stressing consideration should be given to the game having still been amateur as recently as five years ago.

“We have to look at it in the context of where the game has come from and say, look, we’re in a professional era now where the expectations in place for players and coaches is such that all of our focus and attention has got to be on having the top standards. That’s why I’ve always been an advocate of making sure clubs have minimum standards whether it’s code of conduct, player safeguarding, player welfare. I don’t think it’s just in and around player-coach relationships.”

Hayes was among a number of Women’s Super League managers to condemn relationships between coaches and players on Thursday after Leicester City launched an investigation into allegations of one involving manager Willie Kirk.

Last month, Sheffield United sacked Jonathan Morgan over a relationship he had with a player during his time at Leicester, before the club was professional, something he said was “rife” in women’s football.

Jonas Eidevall, whose Arsenal side face Chelsea in a top-of-the-table clash on Friday, said: “It’s very inappropriate for a number of reasons. It’s a clear no with relationships between player and manager.”

Aston Villa’s Carla Ward said such conduct should be a sackable offence, adding: “Our job and our duty is to protect players, first and foremost. So, to cross that line is unacceptable and it can’t happen.

“It makes me very angry because we’re here to set an environment, a comfortable place that people come to work in, where they feel safe, where they feel backed, where they feel looked after. I just don’t understand anyone who crosses that line. The game is professionalised.”

Bristol City’s manager, Lauren Smith, agreed, saying: “I believe it’s a sackable offence. That goes not just from the head coach position, it’s a position of power within the staffing team.

“Is it a problem within the women’s game? The fact we’re having the conversation shows it is an issue on something that needs to be looked at, dealt with sooner rather than later. We’ve seen other instances across the world where things get ignored and pushed under the carpet. It’s not time for that, it’s time for action and consequences.”

Tottenham Hotspur’s Robert Vilahamn, said: “It’s very unprofessional to have a relationship with a player. I don’t think it should be a question we raise here. It’s crazy, it’s unacceptable and shouldn’t be like that.”