Arsenal Football Club have announced the departure of forward Beth Mead after nine successful years at the club.
The Gunners no.9 will depart north London upon the expiration of her contract at the end of the current season. Mead, 31, signed from Sunderland in 2017 and has since gone on to win one WSL title, three League Cups, one FIFA Champions Cup and one UEFA Women’s Champions League during her time at the club.
Beth Mead is ‘an amazing character’ praises Arsenal head coach
Head coach Renée Slegers praised Mead ahead of Arsenal’s penultimate game of the season against Everton.
“I haven’t been part of her whole journey at Arsenal, and I’ve seen it from the outside,” Slegers said. “I’ve been part of it. I’ve been lucky to be part of it the last couple of years. She’s an amazing character.
“She has something special on and off the pitch. There’s so many sides to Beth, and I think that there’s a lot of joy and happiness for the game. She always brings energy to a team. She brings lightness to the room when it’s needed, she brings honesty when it’s needed.
‘There’s a lot of intelligence on the pitch. And of course, you can see that in the stats, the amazing stats throughout her time at Arsenal. So, yeah, for me, it’s been a privilege to work with Beth. Every day of it was joyful, even though there’s always hard times when you’re in a team and you’re working with people. But so much respect for Beth and what she’s done for the club.”
Mead is reportedly in discussion with WSL rivals Manchester City, as per several credible sources.
