Skinner and Slegers pay tribute to Beard after stalemate

Managers Marc Skinner and Renée Slegers paid tribute to the warmth and “larger-than-life character” of Matt Beard after their teams Manchester United and Arsenal played out a goalless draw on a sombre afternoon for the Women’s Super League.

- Tom Garry Leigh Sports Village

Less than 24 hours after the news of the death of the former Liverpool, Chelsea and West Ham United manager Beard, at the age of 47, late on Saturday evening, there was a moment’s silence held before kickoff. Manchester United and Arsenal’s supporters then spontaneously applauded on 47 minutes, with the travelling Arsenal fans displaying the words “We love you Beardy” on handheld signs, and after the game, both managers’ thoughts were clearly primarily with Beard’s loved ones.

“Beardy is an incredible human. He has and will continue to leave a legacy in our game,” the Manchester United manager Skinner said. “It’s a very sad day but there’s some solace in knowing that his memory will always live on. He was a larger-than-life character. I think you live on in people’s memories - I know that I'll keep his legacy alive by talking about him all the time.”