I HAD hoped that Chelsea would come to their senses and create an environment where Eva Carneiro would be allowed to come back to work and not be made to feel like she had done anything wrong.

I would love to say we all know that she had done her job in the opening game of the season but there are some who still feel that the ex-Chelsea doctor was foolish to run on to the pitch, at the behest of the referee it should be noted, and attempt to treat a player who was a bit tired.

However, Carneiro left her post at the club last week, six weeks after she was publicly humiliated by manager Jose Mourinho.

That the Football Association is looking into a complaint that Mourinho used abusive or sexist language towards her also says a lot about who had the support of the club from the start.

At any point over the past month and a half, Roman Abramovic or any other senior figure at the club could have made the self-proclaimed special one apologise to Carneiro but that would have dented his ego and risked losing him for the second time in less than a decade.

Instead, they stood back and watched Mourinho continue to go through the motions on the sideline while Carneiro was confined to the shadows of her home.

The investigation into Mourinho stems from a video released by Sky Sports which shows him shouting out “Son of a bitch” in Spanish as Carneiro and the forgotten Jon Fearn enter the pitch.

However, it is alleged that Mourinho didn’t say “hijo de puta” — which means “son of a whore” in Spanish — and instead said “filha da puta” (“daughter of a whore”) in his native Portuguese while addressing Carneiro directly.

It must be stressed that this is just an allegation but, should it be proven, it could have huge ramifications.

Would the FA have the stomach to ban Mourinho for the vile sexist outburst? Or would they just wag their collective finger at him, call him a naughty boy and tell him to not do it again?

How would the club respond? Would they fine him and ask him to clear his desk as they don’t want a sexist in charge of the club?

Very unlikely, if not impossible, but it would be the correct message to send. That Chelsea will not tolerate sexism at any level and that no one person is too big for the club.

What about the fans? Would they continue to back their manager?

I had an argument with one Chelsea fan while I was away at a games convention in Birmingham last week. Amid video games and gamers, we got into a heated debate about whether Mourinho had done anything wrong.

He honestly believed that Carneiro should have been punished by the club for failing to return to work when asked and in doing so, sacked and fined.

From the start this supportes has defended the actions of the club and it highlights everything Carneiro has had to endure.

This blind loyalty towards Mourinho and Chelsea is why she had no choice but to walk away and seek employment elsewhere.

So where next for football, Chelsea and Carneiro? Personally, I hope that the club make a conscious effort to bring in a new female doctor.

Many would call it a publicity stunt but it would slightly fix their image and not portray them as a sexist club with ideas from the 18th century.

I’ve said this before but football needs to do more to get women working in the game. Not just as secretaries behind a desk but in more prominent roles. As coaches and physios working with and around the first team.

Carneiro? There is no reason why she wouldn’t get a job at any of the 19 other Premier League clubs but would she want to get involved with football again?

She had worked at the club since 2009 and was promoted to the first team in 2011.

But one mistake, in which she wasn’t even in the wrong, in seven years saw her demoted and treated in a way no worker should be.

And it’s not like fans of other clubs treated her with any respect. The constant degrading chants from the stands about her body and vile name-calling would be enough to make anyone walk away from the sport all together, though I hope she does make a return.

She is an excellent doctor and is a role model for any young girl that wants to get a job in the sport.

Her treatment by the club has been disgusting but one can only hope and pray that they have learnt something from his.

What is more likely to happen is that Fearn will resume his duties on the first-team bench and a few media outlets will notice this, point out that the club made him feel welcome after his time on the naughty step and that Carneiro has left.

One newspaper may even do a Fearn-watch, paying particular attention to him and if he does his job correctly this time after being handed a second chance.

But that will last a week, two at tops, and everyone will forget that Carneiro ever worked at the club until she is hired at another club or at another company.

The media will move on from the incident and sweep sexism back under the carpet until the next time a manager or player says something abhorent.

It is a shame that in 2015 Carneiro felt that she was no longer accepted or wanted at Stamford Bridge and her forced decision puts football firmly back in the dark ages of women working in the game.

It is almost as if we are back in 1989, with Ron Atkinson telling a female journalist: “Blimey, you’re the first bird I’ve met with an FA coaching badge,” while making clear that: “Women should be in the kitchen, the discotheque and the boutique — but not in football.”