Chelsea players wore t-shirts with a message for Emma Hayes during their pre-match warm-up ahead of their Premier League clash against Aston Villa on Sunday.
The women's side followed suit in support of their manager, who is recovering from an operation, ahead of their Women's Super League meeting with Everton. Hayes, who has been in charge of the London club for 10 years, announced this week she is taking some time away from the game as she returns to full health.
The 45-year-old manager underwent an emergency hysterectomy last week amid an ongoing battle with endometriosis. Assistant manager Paul Green and assistant coach Denise Reddy have taken charge of the team for the foreseeable future, until Hayes makes a return.
She said in a statement on Thursday: "Last Tuesday I underwent an emergency hysterectomy following my ongoing battle with endometriosis. I’m now in recovery and will need time and patience to return to full health.
"I just want to say thank you also to my amazing doctors, Dr Alex Laurence and Dr Sally Harris for their outstanding care. A huge thank you to our owners, the board and our HR director, Jo Stone, for the support they’ve shown and of course all of my family, staff and players. Throughout my absence, Denise Reddy will be making the on-field decisions along with Paul Green who will be carrying out all press obligations on my behalf.
"We have built a tremendous team over many years and we’ve adopted a very multi-disciplinary approach so that if situations like this arise, we are capable of being able to respond to the challenge. We have full confidence in Paul, Denise and all of the staff. We also know the team are very special and we have no doubt they’ll do everything to maintain their high standards."
Hayes' side were crowned Women's Super League champions for a third consecutive season earlier this year and will look to retain their title come the end of the current campaign. During her 10 years in charge of Chelsea, she has won five league titles in total, along with four FA Cups and two League Cups.
She took over the London club back in 2012 following a spell in the United States with Chicago Red Stars. She added in her statement: "To our fans, you’ve had to listen to me bellowing from the other side of the pitch every week but now I want to hear you even louder because I’ll be sitting at home watching the team on the television until my return.
"I know you’ll respect that my health comes first and at this time I’ve got to prioritise what I need to do for me. I fully expect to make a full recovery and I look forward to seeing you in the foreseeable future."
