Chelsea head coach Emma Hayes has said she let herself down with comments on relationships between players and was wrong to use the term “inappropriate”.

Hayes said in a news conference on Thursday that player-coach relationships should be banned in the Women’s Super League and that player-player relationships were also “inappropriate”.

Chelsea defender Jess Carter, who is in a relationship with team-mate Ann-Katrin Berger, later liked a tweet claiming it was “beyond bonkers to bring player/player relationships into the conversation”.

Chelsea striker Sam Kerr announced her engagement with West Ham’s American midfielder Kristie Mewis last year.

After Chelsea’s WSL win against Arsenal on Friday night, Hayes, who has won six WSL titles since taking charge in 2012, said she regretted her comments.

Hayes said: “Of course Jess and I have had a conversation about that.

“I’m supposed to be the most non-clickbait coach and so I let myself down yesterday.

“I don’t think it was right for me to use the term inappropriate for the players.

“When I have honest conversations I don’t take things back but I have zero criticism of any player in my dressing room for anything regarding their status or who they’re in a relationship with.”

On Thursday, Aston Villa boss Carla Ward said a manager should be sacked for having a relationship with a player, calling it a “complete abuse of power”.

Hayes was one of several other WSL head coaches who claimed coach-player relationships should not be allowed.

When asked if a ban should be part of a wider WSL code of conduct, Hayes said: “Yeah, I think so. There are challenges that we should be moving past.”

Chelsea and Germany goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger has revealed she has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer for a second time and will begin treatment this week.

Berger was initially diagnosed in November 2017 during her time with Birmingham City, but made a full recovery and was subsequently named in the PFA Team of the Year.

However, the 31-year-old said on Tuesday that after four years being cancer-free, a recurrence has been detected in her thyroid.

"I've said before that as a sportsperson, you have to fight every day to be the best you can be and that's something I will continue to do," she said in a statement.

"I hope by sharing my journey I can help others that find themselves in a similar situation.

"I am working closely with my club doctor and specialist in London, and my treatment will start this week.

"I remain positive that my treatment will be as effective as last time, and I'm looking forward to returning to the pitch and seeing you all at Kingsmeadow and Stamford Bridge."

Berger has played a key role between the sticks for Chelsea in their Women's Super League triumphs of the past three seasons.

The former Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper, who won the WSL's golden glove in 2020-21, was also part of the Germany squad that reached the Euro 2022 final last month.