Hayes: ‘Let myself down’ over intrasquad relationship comments

Chelsea boss Emma Hayes has said she let herself down by calling intrasquad player relationships “inappropriate” and added that she will no longer be providing “clickbait headlines.”

Hayes, who takes over as coach of the U.S. women’s national team in June, expressed her disapproval of romantic relationships between players on the same team Thursday, adding that it would be “ideal” if she didn’t have to deal with them.

– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

Hayes’ comments seemingly didn’t go down well with Chelsea defender Jess Carter, who is in a relationship with her teammate Ann-Katrin Berger. The England international liked a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter) criticising Hayes for her views.

When asked about Carter’s reaction in the aftermath of Chelsea’s 3-1 win over Arsenal in the Women’s Super League on Friday, Hayes took the opportunity to apologise for her remarks but didn’t backtrack from them.

“I want to be clear to everybody in the room, I don’t want to create any more clickbait headlines for you guys. I think sometimes that becomes the case when we have honest conversations about things,” Hayes said at a…