Caitlin Foord has said goodbye to her teammates and is heading for Arsenal before the end of this transfer window, so what can Gooners expect from the Australian international?
The Australian striker is a well-travelled and experienced player. The 25-year-old has already played in three World Cups with her first tournament selection as far back as 2011 when she was just 16. As such, Foord has 77 caps and 17 goals for her country.
Foord played her first league game in Australia back in 2010, so arrives with 10 years of first team experience behind her and 202 first team appearances in her locker.
It is interesting to note that she has also played in three different leagues: Australia, USA and Japan with six different clubs. When she is finally announced as an Arsenal player that will make seven clubs in four countries just two months into her 25th year.
Foord is extremely versatile. She can play in all three positions up font as well as at full-back on either side but if you like to bet on soccer, which apparently loads of Aussies do, then put your money being used up top. She is a powerful forward who can handle strong defenders while efficient on the wings with good crossing ability. Although she has been used as a defender for club and country, I don’t think it suits her game to play at the back.
Full-backs need to be able to get up and down the pitch quickly and that, unfortunately, is not one of her many strengths.
I would certainly expect her to be used in rotation up front when Miedema needs a rest or on the wings where Mead, Evans and van de Donk share the workload.
In short, Foord will definitely be a good asset for the Arsenal Women team and as we saw on Sunday against Chelsea, the team certainly needs more depth.