USWNT stars Tobin Heath and Christen Press have left Manchester United after just one season in the WSL, and the pair are now expected to reunite with clubs at home in the NWSL.
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WSL gave a number of USWNT players the opportunity to get playing time during the 2020/21 campaign due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on NWSL, which forced the regular 2020 season to be interrupted and replaced with two mini-tournaments.
Not only did Heath and Press move to England in 2020, so did world champions in winners Sam Mewis, Rose Lavelle and Alex Morgan. Morgan left Tottenham within a few months, while Mewis and Lavelle left Manchester City at the end of the season.
The departures from Heath and Press from United have been widely expected since then, but it is only now that there has been an element of confirmation regarding their respective immediate future.
Both players gave world-class quality and experience to Man Utd / Matthew Ashton – AMA / Getty Images
United have yet to make such an announcement, with Jess Sigsworth and Jane Ross the only confirmed departures since the end of the May season. But when Heath and Press were named in the US squad for the Olympics in Japan, they were both listed as ‘unbound’.
US Soccer no longer believes they are United players and that is a sure sign that none of them will return to Manchester for the 2021/22 promotion.
Their departures after just one season are a great shame, not least because England’s coronavirus restrictions ensured that United’s home stadium remained closed at all times and fans never got a chance to see two world – class superstars up close.
Coronavirus restrictions meant fans could never watch Heath or Press play live / Matthew Ashton – AMA / Getty Images
It could be a summer with significant changes for United. After Casey Stony’s shocking departure as manager in May, the club is in a critical moment and with a number of players leaving – there are still strong rumors that Lauren James will join Chelsea – new signings are important.
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