Emma Hayes insisted talk of which national anthem she would sing ahead of the USA’s 0-0 draw with England was “ridiculous” - and insisted the topic should not be used to “fuel a nationalist debate”.
London-born Hayes returned to her native country as her US team earned a goalless friendly draw with England at Wembley in front of more than 78,000 fans on Saturday evening.
Hayes, who left Chelsea in May after 12 years in charge, admitted to Standard Sport in an interview this week that it was going to “feel a bit weird” coaching her team against her own nation.
Asked whether she sang ‘God Save The King’ as well as ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ ahead of kick-off at Wembley, Hayes replied: “I was definitely mouthing the [English] national anthem. I was struggling with where to be in all of that.
“I got to the end of the anthems, and I thought: it’s so ridiculous. I’m proud to be English, and I’m proud of our national anthems. I’ve sung it since I was a kid.
“And I’m also proud to coach America and I’m proud of that national anthem. Two things are possible at once. I know we want to fuel a nationalist debate around it. The realities are: both countries are very dear to me for different reasons, and I’m proud to represent both of them.”
Hayes said of the match: “It was two top teams. Sarina [Wiegman] is an amazing coach. I thought it was a tactical match-up.
“I felt we should have done more for the volume of entries we had, but I thought we were the better team.”
