A number of Womenâs Super League managers have condemned coach-player relationships in football with Aston Villaâs Carla Ward calling it âunacceptableâ and Jonas Eidevall saying it is âvery inappropriateâ.
Their comments come in the wake of Leicester launching an investigation into an alleged relationship between the manager, Willie Kirk, and one of his players. Last month Sheffield United sacked Jonathan Morgan for an alleged relationship with a player during his time at Leicester, before the club was professional and affiliated with the menâs side.
Asked whether it should be a sackable offence, Ward said: âYep. Our job and our duty is to protect players, first and foremost. So, to cross that line is unacceptable and it canât happen.
âIt makes me very angry because weâre 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 donât understand anyone who crosses that line. The game is professionalised.â
Player-manager relationships have been an open secret within the sport for a long time and while Morgan and Kirk have been named because of action taken by their clubs, many other managers, male and female, in the womenâs football pyramid are thought to have had relationships with players.
Critically, there is a lack of reporting mechanisms available. âThat is the biggest problem,â said Ward. âEssentially if youâre the manager and youâre crossing that line itâs very difficult for anyone to report it. Weâre in a moment right now where thereâs a microscope on the womenâs game, I think people have taken advantage of certain positions. I donât like that, I donât think itâs right.â
The Arsenal manager, Jonas Eidevall, echoed Wardâs sentiments. âItâs very inappropriate for a number of reasons,â he said. âItâs a clear no with relationships between player and manager. Thereâs no doubt if you look and you read the NWSL reports for example there are major issues within the game and there have been in the past as well. [This] probably, unfortunately, tells you that there still are issues in some places. That concerns me from a player welfare perspective and governing bodies, leagues, clubs and associations need to be strong on that.â
The Chelsea manager, Emma Hayes, said consideration needs to be given to the impact of the game going from being amateur and essentially grassroots, to professional. âI think player coach relationships are inappropriate, player to player relationships are inappropriate,â she said.
âBut we have to look at it in the context of where the game has come from and say, look, weâre 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. Thatâs why Iâve always been an advocate of making sure clubs have minimum standards whether itâs code of conduct, player safeguarding, player welfare. I donât think itâs just in and around player-coach relationships.â
Expanding on the issues with player to player relationships, Hayes said she hopes it will phase out of the game. âItâs about the challenges it poses,â she said. âOne playerâs in the team, oneâs not in the team. One might be in the last year of their contract, one might not be. One might be competing in a position with someone else. You donât need me to spell that out. It presents challenges.
âLonger-term, in an ideal world you wouldnât have to deal with that. It is quite challenging for coaching teams to have to deal with it ⌠we have to [think] an awful lot about how we manage those challenges in the locker room, because they are far from ideal.â
The topic dominated the press conferences on Thursday in the buildup to the weekendâs WSL games, which include Chelsea facing Arsenal in a top-of-the-table match at Stamford Bridge on Friday and Leicester, who are now led by assistant manager Jennifer Foster and first-team coach Stephen Kirby, taking on Tottenham away on Sunday.
Only West Ham did not allow any questions on the matter while Brighton shut down the topic after one question, with interim manager Mikey Harris having said: âItâs a really difficult one to answer because I think thereâs so much context around the subject that Iâm not aware of so Iâm not really comfortable giving an answer on something that I donât have enough context on.â
Bristol Cityâs manager, Lauren Smith, said there was no grey area. âItâs unacceptable and it shouldnât happen,â she said. âI believe itâs a sackable offence. That goes not just from the head coach position, itâs a position of power within the staffing team.
âIs it a problem within the womenâs game? The fact weâre having the conversation shows it is an issue on something that needs to be looked at, dealt with sooner rather than later. Weâve seen other instances across the world where things get ignored and pushed under the carpet. Itâs not time for that, itâs time for action and consequences.
âClubs should be responsible for what goes on within their clubs. Weâve seen in the past that if clubs donât know how to or canât, support from the FA or governing body, LMA or PFA, itâs important everyone has a voice. If clubs donât know what to do then they need to ask for help.â
Robert Vilahamn, who joined Tottenham as their manager last summer, was in agreement with his colleagues, saying: âItâs totally not acceptable. As a coach I am in a power position with players and staff. Itâs very unprofessional to have a relationship with a player. I donât think it should be a question we raise here, itâs crazy. Itâs unacceptable and shouldnât be like that.â