Tobin Heath made her Arsenal debut with a late cameo off the bench as the Gunners ran riot against Manchester City to further bolster their place atop the Women’s Super League.
A Kim Little double proved the centrepiece of a 5-0 victory at Meadow Park, as Jonas Eidevall’s side made it three wins from three to keep their perfect start to the new season intact.
Vivianne Miedema, Katie McCabe and Leah Williamson also scored, while U.S. national team star Heath’s late appearance will have also thrilled Gunners supporters.
When did Heath come on?
With Arsenal 4-0 up and cruising to victory, two-time World Cup winner Heath came on for fellow striker Beth Mead in the 86th minute.
The 33-year-old – a childhood Gunners fan who spent time last term with Manchester United – then played out the remaining nine minutes of the match.
Although she did not manage to find the target herself, she was on hand to celebrate Williamson’s effort late in injury time which added a final touch of gloss for the hosts.
Eidevall hails star’s ‘ambition’
Speaking after the match, Eidevall was quick to praise Heath for her commitment following a quick turnaround that only saw her arrive in the country at the end of the week.
“It’s obviously been [three] intense days for her,” he stated. “She landed on Friday, she did one session Saturday and she was on the pitch here now on Sunday.
“It’s a long [trip] from the U.S. to here so I think she has managed it extremely well. She was very much focused on looking forward to trying to get minutes here today.
“I always love when the players have that ambition. Hopefully we can add some more training time and get her settled in even more.”
The bigger picture
Heath’s debut comes after she played sparingly in the USWNT’s recent friendlies against Paraguay – but with further minutes likely to come, she will hope to feature for both club and country.
With Arsenal, she will aim to back up her reputation as the signing of the off-season in the WSL, as the Gunners go in search of further silverware
With her country, she will hope to figure in their upcoming friendlies with South Korea, scheduled for the end of October.
