"Women's football is not a step down from anything."
Those were the words of Chelsea Women's boss Emma Hayes when she was linked to the AFC Wimbledon job back in 2021. Hayes, who joined the Blues in 2012, is one of the most decorated managers in the women's game, having so far scooped 14 major honours during her tenure at Kingsmeadow.
Over the past decade, Hayes has taken on the mantle of the Women's Super League's most venerated matriarch and it's perhaps little wonder more than one EFL club has reportedly placed the Chelsea icon near the top of their wishlists in recent years.