England need the right person for the job of manager of the England women’s team, male or female, according to former Arsenal defender Casey Stoney.

Mo Marley has been appointed as interim manager of the side, but she is only expected to be in the role until the end of the year, with the FA reportedly searching for someone else to take over after that.

Some people, like ex-Arsenal Kelly Smith, would prefer to see a woman appointed, after Mark Sampson was sacked after evidence allegedly emerged of “inappropriate and unacceptable” behaviour in a previous role. But Casey disagrees, telling BBC Sport: “I am not a big believer in giving a female a job for the job’s sake.

“They have to be right, they have to be good at their job, but that doesn’t mean it should not be a female. For me it is about the right person for the job.

“If the right person right now is a guy that is an exceptional coach then it should be a guy. If it is an exceptional female that’s a great coach then it should be a female.

“It depends what the FA is looking for. I’m sure they will advise the players and get some feedback from the players on what they think they need.”

If the FA give a lot of thought and consideration to the decision, getting feedback from players and making a balanced decision, then it shouldn’t matter too much whether that decision is for a man or woman.

The problem is that this doesn’t seem to have happened in the past. For example, when Mark Sampson was being investigated over allegations of “bullying and discrimination”, Alex Scott told the BBC that she’d “never been asked any questions, or been asked to be part of an investigation”.

If the FA make their decisions without consulting the people those decisions will end up affecting, then they could well end up in this same situation again, whether the person they end up appointing is male or female.