Chelsea star Erin Cuthbert has praised manager Emma Hayes following her hysterectomy, revealing that the 46-year-old was heavily involved with the Blues during her recovery.
Hayes was absent from the Chelsea touchline for over a month after announcing on October 13 that she would be taking temporary leave from her post, but is set to be back in the dugout for her side's game against Tottenham on Sunday.
Cuthbert said she is 'really excited' to see Hayes return, after admitting she 'put everything in place for the club to run smoothly' in her absence.
'Everyone has got this perception that Emma wasn’t involved', said Cuthbert. 'She was still watching every training session and giving all the advice. Being heavily involved in team selection and she was mic’d up to the entire staff during the game.
'It is weird not seeing her though. He is bubbly, energetic and loves a little joke. I am really excited for when she can come back, but she has definitely been involved more than you might think.
'Emma has put everything in play for the club to run smoothly. We had assistant coaches - one would do the press conferences and the other one would take the training session. I think the way they managed all the roles was impeccable from the staff.
'I think the way they managed the roles was what Emma’s legacy has been so far. She is leaving it in a better place. She has done so, so well, I am so excited to see her back and I am sure a lot of other people are too as they will have been working more now than they have been when Emma’s been there.'
Cuthbert recently signed a new contract at Chelsea, which will keep her at the club until 2025.
She has scored 20 goals in 56 appearances since joining the club in 2016, and is now ready to kick on.
'It’s was a little bit of a long time coming', she said. 'It was in the works for a while but I am just over the moon its finally done.
'I have been here since I was 18, a young girl and now I am an adult. I want to be named among the ones that are at the top of the world. So I need to keep pushing and I know I have a lot to learn.
'I am really enjoying playing in central midfield and that was a big part of the contract. I think that is where they see me now given how much I have played there recently and it’s where I want to be and I really enjoy it so hopefully I can kick on and achieve everything I want to achieve individually and as part of the team.'
Cuthbert is also a fan of the new Call of Duty Warzone game, which was released on Thurday.
She credited video games as a way to stay in contact with former team-mate Hannah Blundell, who now plays for Manchester United, and admitted she often competes with other United players for bragging rights on the game.
'There are actually a group of us that play in Warzone', she said. 'Hannah Blundell that used to be a Chelsea plays with me. We used to live together and she would be up in her room with her headset on and I would be in my room.
'Video games are a way for me to stay in contact with her. We would be texting saying do you want to jump on Call of Duty. We don’t get to see each other much because she is in Manchester and I am in London. So it’s a good way of staying connected with her.
'I do jump on with a couple of the Manchester United girls because they are Hannah’s team-mates and we do get a little bit of bragging rights if one of us gets more war kills than the other.'
Sportsmail spoke to Chelsea Women’s star star Erin Cuthbert on the launch of Call of Duty’s Warzone 2.0, out now.