KATHRYN BATTE: Too many women’s football clubs are afraid to sack their coaches when things go wrong – tight finances and a lack of top coaches are driving down standards.

The race to sack managers is often a major part of the Premier League season. This campaign, however, the clubs have been more reserved. Former Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom and Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper are the only men to have been sacked, while Roy Hodgson resigned from Crystal Palace in March and Julen Lopetegui left Wolves before a ball is kicked.

The previous season saw a record 14 managers sacked. Perhaps unsurprisingly, women’s football is more conservative. Only five managers have been sacked in the last two Women’s Super League seasons – and they are from the same clubs.

Brighton are responsible for three, with Hope Powell and Jens Scheuer fired last season while Mel Phillips was let go in February. The other two came to Leicester, Lydia Bedford last season and Willie Kirk last month.

Pressing the panic button doesn’t always work. This poses obvious cost issues and there is no guarantee that replacements will fare any better. There is also something to be said for perseverance.

Manchester City could easily have sacked Gareth Taylor after failing to win a trophy or qualify for the Champions League last season. The club has stuck by him and now has a chance of winning a first WSL title in eight years.

Scotland failed to qualify for the World Cup but still handed Pedro Martinez Losa a new contract.

Willie Kirk was sacked by Leicester last month in the latest management change in the WSL.

But the problem in women’s football is that sometimes clubs and countries persist in mediocrity.

Scotland failed to qualify for the World Cup but still handed Pedro Martinez Losa a new contract. They finished last in their Nations League group and were humiliated in their final match against England, with the Lionesses winning 6-0.

Their relegation to League B saw them drawn into a Euro 2025 qualifying group with Serbia, Slovakia and Israel. This is a group they should be leading, but in their first match they were held to a 0-0 draw in Serbia. How much longer can the Scottish FA keep Losa in his job?

It is obvious that they are not making progress and that change is necessary.

There may be the same lack of determination at club level. Tottenham have finally sacked Rehanne Skinner after nine consecutive league defeats last season. Skinner is not a bad manager, as evidenced by her work at West Ham, but it was obvious that things had become stale.

Part of the problem could be that owners are less invested in the day-to-day management of their women’s teams. Could Spurs president Daniel Levy have allowed the men’s team manager to record up to nine consecutive defeats?

Another problem is that there are fewer coaching selections in women’s football, or at least less obvious names. Chelsea’s recruitment process for Emma Hayes’ successor has shown that it is not easy to find world-class coaches.

While most women’s clubs are reserved, Brighton is an exception to the rule. But did their relentless approach work? Yes and no. Powell’s position had become untenable after an 8–0 defeat to Tottenham, but Scheuer’s subsequent appointment was a mistake.

The biggest managerial question mark currently is whether Marc Skinner should be fired by Manchester United.

Tottenham have finally sacked Rehanne Skinner after nine consecutive league defeats last season.

Phillips came in and kept the club going and her dismissal in February was harsh given she was still relatively new to the role. But it is clear that interim boss Mikey Harris, named manager of the month for March, has done a good job since his arrival.

The biggest managerial question mark currently is whether Marc Skinner should be fired by Manchester United. Skinner is out of contract at the end of the season and several supporters have called for his departure at various points during the campaign.

United are nine points off the Champions League places and 15 off top spot. The FA Cup is their last hope of winning a title in what has been a disappointing season, but Skinner may still have some credit in the bank after leading the club to their best result last season.

Not every situation is simple, but it’s clear that too many players in the women’s game are content to stick it out when it’s better to stick it out.

Sarina Wiegman wants to stop Keira Walsh from being targeted

England had the same old problems against Sweden last week. Keira Walsh was ruled out of the match and Swedish manager Peter Gerhardsson was happy to give the other teams a plan on how to stop the Lionesses from playing.

“We defended a little lower than normal and tried to take Walsh out of the game,” Gerhardsson said. It worked well, but it’s a common tactic that teams have deployed against England.

“We basically have to address this (teams targeting Walsh) every game, we expected that,” Wiegman said. The problem is that England did not seem to have the solution.

England did not seem to have the solution as Keira Walsh’s impact was limited against Sweden.

Walsh was ruled out of the match as the Lionesses were held by Sweden last time out.

The Lionesses boss is expected to make a few changes for Tuesday’s match against the Republic of Ireland, including likely Jess Park – who would step into the number 10 role if selected. What is certain is that England will have to be less predictable if they want to create more chances than against the Swedes.

Youngsters could remedy England’s lack of strikers

Sarina Wiegman doesn’t have a plethora of No.9s to choose from in the England squad, but there are some encouraging signs down the stretch. Poppy Pritchard and Michelle Agyemang are two brilliant attackers who impressed the U19s last week.

Pritchard, who joined Manchester City in January, scored in the 2-0 win over Switzerland while Arsenal’s Agyemang scored the winner against Portugal.

Poppy Pritchard could one day lead the line for England after impressing for the U19s last week

The U23s are the next age group after the seniors and while Aggie Beever-Jones is surely close to a first-team call-up, she can also play out wide as well as in the middle.

Pritchard and Agyemang have the talent to progress if their clubs can develop well in the short term.