Striker Danielle Carter has departed FA WSL Reading FC Women for division rivals Brighton & Hove Albion.
Carter – an Arsenal legend – was a surprise signing for Reading last summer from the Gunners and scored three times in 21 games for the Royals who finished seventh in the campaign.
The striker was part of the Arsenal side that won the FA WSL and FA Women’s Cup in 2011 but suffered two ACL injuries in quick succession from 2018 – but showed serious dedication to recovery and signed for Reading in July 2020.
Brighton – who finished a place above Reading last season – announced the signing on Thursday with Carter writing: “Fortune favours the brave, never be afraid to take on new challenges! I’m happy to announce that I have signed for Brighton and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
Writing to Reading fans, Carter said in another tweet: “Although my time with Reading was short-lived I just want to thank everyone who has supported me during my first season back from injury. Life is about making decisions in order to find your purpose, this new chapter is about finding my feet.”
In January, the striker launched a football boot giveaway – sending her unused boots to people who really needed them.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Carter said: “I had quite a few pairs, 20 plus pairs of boots. And it was a case of how can we get them out to people who really, really need it. It’s not just a case of maybe just a random fan who can’t utilise them, we wanted someone to actually put the boots to use. We came up with the idea to put it out there, especially since Covid, and everyone’s going through what they’re going through individually, just to see who really needed it and what people’s stories were.”
Carter received responses from around the world and is now hoping to grow the campaign with other teammates joining her.
Reading have themselves made a couple of additions including Natasha Dowie in attack from AC Milan while midfielder Chloe Peplow has joined from Tottenham Hotspur.
