Republic of Ireland defender Diane Caldwell has said the national team qualified for the Women’s World Cup “in spite of” Vera Pauw being the team’s manager.
The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) decided against renewing Pauw’s contract, which expired on September 1, after an internal review into all aspects of the World Cup campaign.
Ireland’s women reached a major tournament for the first time in their history but were knocked out after the group stage.
“From my position as a pretty experienced player, I don’t think it was up to the standard expected at the international level,” said Caldwell, 35, when asked about Pauw’s approach to analysing and preparing for games. “And I think the results and performances that we got were in spite of Vera being our coach.”
Chief executive Jonathan Hill confirmed last week that talks about a new deal for Pauw had been placed on hold in July following The Athletic’s investigation into the head coach’s conduct during her time in charge of National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team Houston Dash in 2018.
Pauw denied all the allegations in The Athletic’s report, which included that she “created a culture of fear” and would comment on her players’ weight and appearance. She argued the Dash players were “not…
 decided against renewing Pauw’s contract, which expired on September 1, after an internal review into all aspects of the World Cup campaign. Ireland’s women reached a major tournament for the first time in their history but were knocked out after the group stage. “From my position as a pretty experienced player, I don’t think it was up to the standard expected at...){kind=link}