Ahead of today’s WSL fixture against Liverpool, the only team to beat us so far this season, the manager has been reflecting on the state of her side after last weekend’s draw with Arsenal.

In a high-profile, top-of-the-table clash, Hayes saw her side snatch a point late on, but the performance left plenty to be desired. It has got her thinking about what she wants and expects from her players as the season approaches its business end.

‘This team has won a lot for a long period of time, and been at the top for a long period of time, but it’s not a future predictor of success,’ she stressed.

‘Whatever it took for us in the past to get where we are, is not going to be enough for us to go to the next step.

‘I will demand the most from the team and the fans. I want to make sure the fans demand the most from the team at a time when everything is tight. As a team and a club we have to push on all fronts if we want to end up where we want to.

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‘As Mike Tyson said, fear is like a fire,’ she continued, quoting the legendary boxer.

‘It will either warm you, or it will burn you. You have to be mindful there is always a threat, whether that threat is yourself or your opponent, it is real.

‘My job every day is to remind myself I want fire to warm me, but also to make sure it does the same to my team. If it burns you, it will destroy you. For the time I’ve been here, that’s been one of my tasks as a manager.

‘When you are serial winners like we are, the next steps are the ones you have to be even more mindful of.’

And how do you reach that next step, not only sustaining the high levels Chelsea Women have for so long, but reaching even greater heights?

‘Your self-regulation levels have to be so high,’ Hayes underlined.

‘As Bill Beswick [a sports psychologist] once said, attitude is like a fuel tank. You have to fill it up, all the time.

‘You have to be so mindful of what it takes to win football matches. That’s not purely tactical, or purely effort. It’s the whole holistic piece. Maintaining that fire in your belly and applying the details that matter will determine whether you sustain that level or not.

‘The opponent is always catching, always ready to pounce. However, for me, the biggest opponent in any dressing room is yourself.’