Aston Villa Women manager Carla Ward will leave the club at the end of this season.
Ward has been in charge at Villa for the past three years and says president of football operations Monchi and director of football Damian Vidagany tried to convince her to remain at the club.
“To step down from my post here at Aston Villa has been the hardest decision of my managerial career, but I know it is the right one for my family and I,” the 40-year-old said.
“Managing a great club like Aston Villa has been a full-throttle job and I have always given the role 100 per cent dedication. However, I now believe it is the right time for me to prioritise the other important things — such as my daughter and the rest of my family life.
“I am immensely grateful to Monchi and Damian Vidagany who tried so hard to encourage me to stay in the role, but I know it is the right time to step down after our last game of the season.”
Ward’s Villa finished ninth in the Women’s Super League in the 2021-22 season before recording a club-high fifth-place finish a year later. This season, Villa are seventh with two matches remaining.
“Carla came to us a few weeks ago and spoke of her plan to step down,” Monchi added. “We have had extensive dialogue with her to see if there was anything we could do to persuade her to stay, but she is adamant that she wants to take a break from the game.
“Therefore, on behalf of everybody at Aston Villa, I want to place on record our grateful thanks to Carla for everything she has achieved with us and wish her well for the future.”
Villa say an update on their new manager “will made in due course”.
‘Surprising news’
Analysis from women’s footballer writer Charlotte Harpur
This news has come somewhat as a surprise, especially as Ward signed a one-year contract extension until 2025 with an option to extend for a further year. The fact that the club tried to persuade her to stay shows her impact on the team.
Her players think highly of her and value her human-first management approach but ultimately Ward has decided to put her family first. She has spoken previously on the relentless demands of juggling being a football manager and a mother to her four-year-old daughter Hartley.
“You do start to question whether that’s something you can do for the long term,” she told the BBC last month. “Have I got an answer to that? No.
“Have I questioned whether I can keep doing it? Of course, because she’s my pride and joy and I want to spend time with her. It’s constantly pulling on your head and your heart.”
(Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
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