Tobin Heath leaves Arsenal

Arsenal confirmed the departure of American winger Tobin Heath, after terminating her contract. Heath suffered a hamstring injury last week that ruled her out for the remainder of the season. The move was sealed in order to allow Heath to return to the United States to undergo rehabilitation with her personal medical team.

Speaking to Arsenal.com, Heath said, “Although I’m disappointed that my time at Arsenal has come to an early end, I have loved every minute of my time here.”

Speaking in yesterday’s pre-match press conference, Jonas Eidevall paid tribute to what Heath did on the field, but also off the field: “I spoke about this with Tobin when we talked about her going back to the US, her standards are so high and I think she wanted to contribute even more to the club. I can see she did a lot of things on and off the pitch that leaks through to other players.”

Heath scored twice in the WSL, including the stoppage time equalizer against Manchester City in January, and scored once and assisted two goals in the Champions League. Ultimately, though, injuries played a role in Heath not becoming a starter for Arsenal. She had a number of injuries: a calf problem in the autumn, and another muscular problem in the spring before this latest hamstring. Heath only played 295 minutes in the WSL and 169 minutes in the Champions League.