Burnley are in advanced talks with the former Liverpool manager Matt Beard about their women’s team’s head coach role, the Guardian can reveal.
It is understood the club are close to a deal with the 47-year-old in what would be a big statement of intent from the third-tier club, who recently announced they will become fully professional next season.
Beard, formerly also the manager of Chelsea, Boston Breakers and West Ham, oversaw a fourth-placed finish in the Women’s Super League with Liverpool 13 months ago and has extensive experience at the top of the women’s game. He guided Liverpool to back-to-back WSL titles in 2013 and 2014, during the first of his two spells there. He also led Chelsea to the FA Cup final in 2012 and West Ham to the 2019 final. In his second spell at Liverpool, Beard oversaw promotion to the WSL in 2022 before leaving on 27 February with the team seventh.
Burnley finished fourth in the northern region of the third tier last term, 12 points behind the champions, Nottingham Forest. They have ambitions for promotion and last month the chair, Alan Pace, said: “It’s important that we now provide the resources required to go full-time and give those involved the opportunity to progress to the next level. We see both the men’s and women’s teams as being important now and forever, and this move aims to accelerate the women further along their development timeline.”
The club have been searching for a permanent head coach since mutually agreeing to part ways with Rebecca Sawiuk in March, and the first-team coach Louise Roberts was placed in interim charge. Last season some players were on full-time terms and others combined training with education or day jobs, but they are to receive a significant increase to their operating budget.
Burnley applied to fill the WSL 2 vacancy when Blackburn withdrew last month, but those in charge of the leagues gave Sheffield United a reprieve from relegation instead of promoting Burnley.
