Aston Villa Women confirm Chloe Arthur will leave the club
Aston Villa Women have announced that midfielder Chloe Arthur will be leaving the club at the end of June.
The club announced that the Scottish international would be leaving in a short 64-word statement on the club’s official website on Monday 20 June.
Arthur was Villa’s first signing after promotion to the Women’s Super League in 2020, arriving from Second City rivals Birmingham City.
She made 40 appearances across her two seasons with the club and scored one goal, a 94th-minute header in a 3-1 defeat to Everton in April 2021.
Arthur joins Jodie Hutton, Nat Haigh, Shania Hayles and Sophie Haywood in leaving Aston Villa Women alongside the retiring Anita Asante, leaving Villa very short on players.
Are Villa making a mistake?
Arthur is a player who often went under the radar at Villa, she was not a particularly glamorous player but Villa were always better with her in the team.
She provided a bite in midfield that Villa needed as they fought it out near the bottom of the league while others provided more flair.
Villa signed Irish international Ruesha Littlejohn in 2021 who also performed well in a similar role last season, but Arthur still shone.
However, Villa have been giving increasing amount of minutes to young prospects in recent seasons and two of the best are in Arthur’s position.
18-year-old Laura Blinkilde impressed across her 11 appearances last season while 17-year-old Oliva McLoughlin was instrumental in Villa’s inaugural WSL campaign.
The BBC also reported in May that Anna Patten, who can play across defence and midfield, is set to return to Villa from Arsenal, replacing the bite Arthur provided.
Ultimately, Carla Ward’s number one priority should be a striker rather than midfield depth after scoring just 13 goals last season.
In other Aston Villa news, the club are monitoring Conor Gallagher ahead of a potential summer move.