Winning the Champions League with Arsenal in 2007 meant “the world” to Emma Hayes. “The medal hangs very proudly on that lovely light in my kitchen,” Hayes, who will leave Chelsea to manage the US Women’s National Team (USWNT) at the end of the season, said in October. “(The Champions League) isn’t missing from my cabinet, it’s very firmly there.
“I’ve got a gold one (UEFA Women’s Cup as Arsenal assistant) and a silver one (2021 Champions League). Would I like to do it as Chelsea manager? Of course I’d love to, but it isn’t missing from my life, that’s for sure.”
Yes, Hayes, 47, has conquered Europe once before but under Arsenal manager Vic Akers 17 years ago, she played a very different role to that of Chelsea assembler and leader over the last 12 years. Hayes, as expected, downplayed how much winning the Champions League would mean to her six months ago and did so again before Saturday’s semi-final second-leg tie against Barcelona, describing it as “just another game”.
But it was anything but. It was a match in which Chelsea had a 1-0 advantage in front of a first sellout crowd at Stamford Bridge and could knock out the holders to keep their hopes of winning that elusive trophy alive.
“You’re only as good as your next game,” she said on Friday. Well, Hayes’ team lost that next game 2-0, one of, if not, the biggest game of her career. She executed a near-perfect tactical game plan but Chelsea were without any recognisable striker as Mayra Ramirez joined Sam Kerr and Mia Fishel on the injury list, conceded in the 25th minute via a deflection, hit the woodwork twice, had Kadeisha Buchanan sent off in what was “the worst decision in UEFA Women’s Champions League history,” according to Hayes, and conceded a “soft” penalty, in defender Jess Carter’s words. “Everything went their way,” Hayes said, crestfallen.
Hayes was furious with the officials after Chelsea’s exit (Naomi Baker/Getty Images )
But Barcelona were the better side and Chelsea failed to take their chances. “The first goal came from lack of discipline,” said Carter. “You can’t give them the opportunities to just do what they want the whole time. We let them dictate the whole way through.”
There is no shame in losing to Barcelona, especially after a red card. They are the greatest team of this era on the European and world stage given the dominant presence of players in Spain’s national team. “If it weren’t for Barcelona, we would have been European champions already,” said Hayes in October.
Does this loss define Hayes and her legacy? No. Her legacy does not hinge on a semi-final defeat and her impact on the the sport remains unchanged. She will still be remembered as the most dominant and influential coach in WSL history in a period when the women’s game was at its most visible, as well as a pioneer, spokesperson and advocate for women’s football.
However, coming so close to winning the Champions League — Chelsea have made the last five out of six semi-finals and lost to Barcelona by one goal on aggregate in consecutive years — will hurt a lot. In the post-match huddle Hayes was proud of her players but did not have “many words”, according to Melanie Leupolz, who noted that, for players, Champions League finals are equally hard to come by.
Some players were reluctant to talk about Hayes’ legacy after the game, instead focussing on the team. Indeed once Hayes’ farewell tour has ended, they will have to move on without her and, like the title of her audiobook, “Kill the unicorn”, slay the belief that a leader is a “magical creature able to solve any problem”.
“It’s not about Emma today, it was about Chelsea as a collective,” said Carter. “We don’t play just for Emma, we play for ourselves, the fans and everything we all put into every game. Emma desperately wanted to win but no more than we all did. We’re all equally disappointed.”
“This one game doesn’t define anything for Emma or anyone else,” added Fran Kirby. “She can leave the club very proud of everything she’s done and I hope she takes that with her.”
Hayes has had her last shot at the Champions League with Chelsea and despite her managerial honours, there will always be a blank on her record, the trophy that got away, the manager who dominated domestically but never quite finished the job on the European stage, one of the best but not the best.
Indeed as the future USWNT manager, Hayes will be judged solely on games like these: crunch matches in knockout stages against the best teams in the world. Getting these pressure moments right, and she did little wrong over the two semi-final legs, in major tournaments will be the only yardstick.
But for now, Hayes’ attention must return to the Women’s Super League. Her side have gone from quadruple contenders to exiting three cup competitions in less than a month. She could leave England empty handed with just the league title left to play for — they trail Manchester City by three points but have a game in hand with four to play.
“You have no choice, you’ve got to dust yourself off and go again,” said Carter whose team will face Tottenham on Thursday. But given Hayes’ departure, the focus will undoubtedly turn to her as she tries to win the WSL for a fifth consecutive year. Among six WSL titles, five FA Cups and two League Cups with the London club, a trophyless 2023-24 season would leave an even starker gap in the history books.
(Steve Bardens/Getty Images)
