"Mark Sampson, the England Women's manager, admits accusations of bullying, harassment and racism have ""put him in a difficult position emotionally"" as the Football Association continues its investigation into his conduct. The scrutiny on Sampson has overshadowed the start of the Lionesses' World Cup qualifying campaign, which kicks off against Russia at Prenton Park on Tuesday. In a passionate defence of her manager, striker Jodie Taylor said Sampson has the full backing of the squad. But for the coach, it was a forlorn hope the focus would shift to matters on the pitch given the nature of the allegations off it. ""The focus for us this week is to try and be professional about the game but of course we're aware of what's going on, we're getting updates from the organisation and we can't escape the news,"" he said. ""I think if anyone has put themselves in my position they would feel in a very difficult position emotionally. But over the course of the last 10 days I've been fully aware we've got a big game – it's a World Cup qualifier against the second seeded team in this group and out of respect to the team, my role and my mentality to be professional, I've worked incredibly hard to prepare these players and the players have done the same."" Aluko has been a vocal critic of Sampson's conduct Credit: Michael Regan/Getty Images Sampson faces more questions regarding alleged remarks made to Drew Spence at the China Cup in October 2015. It is alleged Sampson asked Spence, a mixed race player, how many times she has been arrested. Text messages exchanged between squad members at the time referencing any comments made by the manager could form part of the new investigation. Another player, Eni Aluko, alleges Sampson told her to be careful Nigerian relatives did not bring Ebola to Wembley. He denies both allegations. ""Any questions now in relation to what happens next, the investigation, the process: they're questions I cannot answer, they have to be asked to the FA,"" said Sampson, who said he was leaning on others to support him through a challenging period. ""How I handle that personally is not for me to discuss with you [the media],"" he added. Sampson still appears to have the backing of his squad Credit: Christopher Lee/Getty Images ""My focus has been on the team and giving them the best chance to perform on the pitch and I've been doing that throughout all this. ""It's never been in doubt in my mind that I had the backing of the players both publicly and privately and the backing of the staff. That's fundamentally what's crucially important to me. The people I'm working with, the people who know who I am, my character, understand and express their views to you guys."" Senior squad members supported their manager. ""We all know what goes on in the group and we are all behind Mark,"" said Arsenal striker Taylor. ""I have been in the squad since Mark was in and I was really surprised by the allegations because it was genuinely not anything I have ever experienced. ""Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and people perceive things differently. The same situations I perceive different (to others). ""For me the environment has been so positive, so open and honest. You are given responsibility, you can speak openly, honestly, you can challenge the staff and for me I thrive in that environment. I don't like to be micro-managed and be controlled, I have played for a lot of clubs all round the world throughout my career and I know when I am given that responsibility and I can challenge the staff whether it is an training, the gym, meeting times, how many meetings we have – we do have a voice. For me it has been all positive. And I really think Mark has helped take my game to another level."" Taylor admitted the claims against the manager have been distracting. ""To be completely honest it has been tough, we have all got phones and social media and we all know what it is going on through the media,"" she said. ""It is tough on Mark, it is tough on the FA and it is tough on the players. There is no getting away from that. If anything it has brought the team closer together. We have a great group culture regardless of what is said. It is the best football environment that I have ever been in."""
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