Why did Emma Hayes & Jonas Eidevall clash in Conti Cup final? Arsenal boss explains bizarre reason behind spat with Chelsea coach after full-time

The incident occurred after the Gunners' thrilling triumph over the Blues in extra time in the Conti Cup final on Sunday. After the full-time whistle, Eidevall appeared to be shoved by an irritated Hayes as he tried to shake hands, and the Swede left with a bewildered look on his face as the Chelsea boss gestured accusingly at him. After the game, Eidevall gave the media his version of the bizarre event.

Speaking to BBC Sport after the match, Eidevall said: "Very happy with the performance. The first half was for the coaches and the second half was for the fans and the audience. We fight hard and of course, I'm happy that we are on the better side of it today."

On the confrontation with Emma Hayes: "Not much. We had a discussion before the game if both teams are going to play with a multi-ball system and Chelsea said they wanted to play with one ball and we said we wanted to play with multi-ball then in the last few minutes, they took another ball and I only said 'Before the game, you wanted to play with one ball'.

"So, it's not my problem. It's all good I think, it's just in the heat of the moment."

Stina Blackstenius' extra-time goal in the 116th minute of play helped Arsenal defeat Chelsea 1-0 in the Conti Cup final for the second year in a row. As Hayes gets ready to join the USWNT at the conclusion of the season, the loss puts an end to Chelsea's ambitions of earning a quadruple in her final campaign as manager.

The two managers have long had an intense rivalry while in charge of two of women’s football’s biggest clubs in England, and they will likely not meet each other again in their current roles for some time, with Hayes set to become USWNT boss in the summer.