Football can often be a cruel world to live in.

Getting let go of a club against your will, or suffering a devastating loss in a big game haunts the mind of the player effected for years but I think we often forget how hard it can be for managers also.

Players are tied into contracts, only really moving clubs during a transfer window or upon the expiry of their contract, but a manager can be let go in an instant no matter what stage of the season you are in.

In women’s and men’s football this happens all the time but it is the significant difference in the financial side that creates a bigger problem.

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The women’s game has struggled to compete with the men’s side of the game, due to vast amount of money being pumped into it whilst the same isn’t being done for the women.

A Premier League manager is comfortable financially, but the same cannot be said for a manager who is let go from their Women’s Super League job.

Matt Beard has been a hugely successful figure in the history of the Liverpool women’s team.

He has endured two spells at the club, winning two Women’s Super League titles in 2012/13 and 2013/14 during his first stint with the club.

After leaving in 2015, he returned in 2021 and guided the team back into the topflight of women’s football.

Beard secured a seventh-place finish during his first season back in the WSL, and a fourth placed finish the following year but this term they lost seven of their first fourteen league matches and a 4-0 thrashing by Manchester City was enough to give Matt Beard the boot in late February.

In an interview with BBC Sport last month, the former Liverpool manager has revealed that he may be set for a dramatic career change if he can’t find any job in football.

“I need a plan A and a plan B.

I want to stay in football but if I can’t find anything – there are not that many professional teams in England in the women’s game, then I need to look at maybe going back into estate agency work or something like that.”

“It would probably be a last resort for me.

But at the end of the day, I have a family I need to support.

I need to look at all options.”

“I want to stay in the game and continue managing.

I have my pro licence and degree in business management.”

“I think people see me as a fixer who can build something, but I know I am much more than that when I look back on my time as a football manager.”

Matt Beard is still searching for a new coaching role, failing to secure anything since his sacking earlier this year.

It opens a bigger question about the problems with the lack of funding in women’s football, something that needs significant improvement.

The quality on the pitch is there, the financial side just needs to grow with it.

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