Tobin Heath stunned Manchester United fans after she opened up on the message the club’s board sent to the women’s team during her time at the Red Devils.
The 36-year-old winger arrived at Manchester United Women in 2020 alongside United States teammate Christen Press after they both signed one-year deals.
Tobin Heath, who had played for Portland Thorns before her move to United Women, made 11 appearances for the Red Devils and scored four times for the club.
The United States international saw her run curtailed by an ankle injury in training ahead of the Women’s Super League match against Chelsea in January 2021.
Heath missed three months through the ankle injury before she suffered a further setback when she was sidelined due to a knee injury.
The US star did not make an appearance for United Women after her ankle injury and subsequently left the Red Devils at the end of her contract.
Christen Press, who was at Utah Royals before signing for United in 2020, made her departure from the Red Devils in the same window as Heath.
Heath on Man Utd Women run
Casey Stoney was in charge of Manchester United Women during the time that United States internationals Tobin Heath and Christen Press came to the club.
United Women were in their third season since their formation as a team and were in their second campaign in the Women’s Super League in the 2020-21 season.
Speaking on The RE—CAP Show, Heath and Press reflected on their season at United Women and how they were part of a “very special locker room.”
Heath recalled how United Women were top of the table around Christmas in 2020 and the female players felt they could now mount an effective league challenge.
“We had a very special team, a very special locker room and I remember we went into Christmas top of the table,” she said.
“For Manchester United Women, this was the first time ever. The team had set goals at the beginning of the year and it was to qualify for the Champions League, which means finish in the top three.
“But we then had a team meeting in December and we said: ‘Should we re-evaluate our goals?’ And we re-evaluated our goals as a team and said: ‘We are going to win the league.’”
Heath reveals Man Utd board’s message
Heath admitted that ex-United Women manager Casey Stoney, who resigned from her role in 2021, approached the board after a re-evaluation of the team’s season.
However, the ex-United Women star claimed that the club’s board were not ready to further help the team win a league title and were focused on a “five-year plan.”
United Women would be unable to mount a title challenge in the second half of the season and finished in fourth place in the league table in the 2020-21 season.
Footage from the show quickly made the rounds on X, formerly Twitter, with United fans furious with the lack of support that was offered to the women’s team.
“You would think Manchester United would be like: ‘This is Manchester United, Yes! We’re going to win the league,’” Heath continued.
“But when Casey went to the board, to the decision-makers, and said: ‘Help us win the league,’ they said: ‘This is a five-year plan. We didn’t expect to win the league this year, it’s not part of the plan.’
“I think in that moment, for us, our ambition going over there and what we give, and for Casey, being a young and super ambitious coach… why would we ever want to be part of a club that the plan wasn’t to win the league when you can win the league?”
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