Tottenham head coach Robert Vilahamn on being male boss in WSL

Robert Vilahamn is one of six men to currently manage a Women’s Super League club, but the Tottenham head coach wants to see more females in his position.

There is a 50-50 gender split among the 12 WSL managers following the recent appointments of Renee Slegers at Arsenal and Natalia Arroyo at Aston Villa, who both replaced men.

But the Spurs boss, who is in his second season at the north London club, says he sees it as his responsibility to create more opportunities for women.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Women’s Football Weekly podcast, he said: “You can ask me ‘why are you working in the women’s game, shouldn’t you give the chance for a women’s coach to be head coach?'”

“I hope more and more [women] become head coaches. I hope there becomes women coaches in the men’s game more.

“But my way of doing it is to make sure I’m a good ally for gender equity and to have different age groups of coaches around me – and especially female coaches.

“You can say whatever you want to me but I choose a female over a male if I can do it because I feel like somebody needs to do that, because it [happens] so much the opposite way.”

Earlier this month he brought in former Mexico international Bri Campos to his coaching staff, which is led by senior assistant head coach Vicky Jepson, and Vilahamn was full of praise for the duo.

“Their knowledge is amazing and you don’t find that if you don’t dare to try to do that,” he said, adding that he was also aware of the need to have female insight while working in women’s football.

“I’m working with female athletes, and if I think I know about females I [am] wrong, I need that expertise around me to be a good leader as well.

“The best staff groups are those that have different ages and different genders. You get [a] much better environment.”