Hayes reacted gracefully to Lineker’s revelation while highlighting the systemic issues that prevent women from breaking into the men’s professional game. The 49-year-old coach, who won seven WSL titles at Chelsea, insisted that the conversation needs to shift away from the candidates and toward the employers.
Responding to Lineker, Hayes said: “You know what, I appreciate you saying that, but managers get asked this question – we’re the ones who have to sit through that in a press conference. And I always say, ‘You’re asking the wrong person’. You have to ask those that own football clubs why they don’t do those things.” She has previously noted the disparity in other fields, stating, “you can find a female pilot, a female doctor, a female lawyer, a female banker, but you can’t find a female coach working in the men’s game, leading men. It just shows you how much work there is to be done.”
