‘Easy fix’ – Chelsea manager calls for new rule to combat problem said to be harming women’s game

Chelsea Women’s boss Sonia Bompastor believes players should be booked if they speak to management staff during treatment for goalkeepers.

Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers raised the issue last month after the 0-0 draw with Manchester United in the Women’s Super League.

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United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce went down and then called for treatment following the red card for her teammate Jayde Riviere.

It allowed the visitors in north London to speak to their coaches and discuss a potential change of tactics amid the sending off.

Although United boss Marc Skinner said Tullis-Joyce ‘had something’ for doctors to assess, Slegers hinted at a negative impact on the WSL.

She claimed that the breaks ‘bring the entertainment down’ and also stressed that the ‘product needs to be attractive.

Now, Chelsea boss Bompastor has suggested a solution for the issue.

“I think from the first year I joined the WSL, teams sometimes try to break down the rhythm in the game, especially when the goalkeeper goes down,” she said. “I think we have an easy fix with that…

“Even if it doesn’t bring the solution on breaking down the game, I think if the goalkeeper goes to the ground, you have to tell every player to stay on the pitch and not allow them to come and talk to the coach.

“Because most of the time when teams do it, it’s because they want to make some tactical changes.

“I already mentioned before, I don’t think that’s part of the rules in football right now, so we shouldn’t be allowed to do that.

“We should maybe try to implement a new rule, and an easy one is if one of the players is talking to the staff and to the coach, she just gets a yellow card.

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“I think it could be simple because as you just mentioned, it’s not nice to get these breakdowns, especially when you have a team who try to always play with intensity, and always try to play as much as possible during the 90 minutes.

“I think we also need to understand the fans are coming to watch us on the pitch and they want to have a lot of rhythm, a lot of playing time, and it’s part of the entertainment we need to give them.”

How is the WSL season shaping up?

Chelsea won a record-extending eighth WSL title last season, which was Bompastor’s first at the club.

However, their chances of a seventh consecutive triumph look slim as they sit third and nine points behind leaders Manchester City.

United are eight behind them in second, with City on course for their first title in a decade.

The WSL schedule has a break this weekend due to the Women’s FA Cup fifth round.