English professional football goalkeeper Thomas David Heaton, who plays for Manchester United in the Premier League, was born on April 15, 1986.
Heaton did not make it into the first team at Manchester United, despite beginning his career in the academy.
He spent time on loan with Swindon Town, Royal Antwerp, Cardiff City, Queens Park Rangers, Rochdale, and Wycombe Wanderers before joining Cardiff permanently after being released by Manchester United in July 2010.
He then signed with Bristol City on a one-year contract with a second-year option but opted it down in May 2013 in favor of a move to Burnley, where he stayed for six years before joining Aston Villa in 2019.
After two years at Aston Villa, he returned to Manchester United in July 2021.
Heaton played for his country as an international from under-16 to under-21. Since 2015, he has been a regular in the senior England teams, having made his debut on May 27, 2016, against Australia.
Club career
Manchester United
Heaton was born in Chester, Cheshire, and began his football career at Wrexham, where he played both goal and midfield.
However, after making 20 appearances for Manchester United’s Under-17 squad in the previous two seasons, he joined United as a trainee on July 8, 2002.
During the 2002-03 season, he established himself as a fixture in the Under-17 team and won the FA Youth Cup despite playing second fiddle to Luke Steele throughout.
He earned his reserve team debut the following season, starting in a 3-1 home win over Birmingham City in the Premier Reserve League on October 2, 2003.
Heaton was named on the bench for the Manchester Senior Cup final against Manchester City at the end of the 2003-04 season, and although not playing, he won a medal.
Heaton had become the Manchester United reserve team’s first-choice goalkeeper by the 2004-05 season, and he was chosen to the bench for Stan Ternent’s testimonial on August 17, 2004, going on as a 76th-minute substitute for Luke Steele, who had previously replaced Tim Howard.
Heaton played in goal for 17 of the 28 Premier Reserve League North games and 12 of the 22 Central League games, and the squad won both league crowns by nine and five points.
Heaton’s form for the reserves led to him being loaned out to Swindon Town at the start of the 2005-06 season, initially until January 1, 2006.
In his second league game, a league encounter against Yeovil Town, Heaton stopped a penalty kick by Lee Johnson. Heaton made his professional debut against Wycombe Wanderers in the League Cup.
Heaton spent the 2007-08 season with Manchester United’s first team, appearing on the bench when Edwin van der Sar was injured.
Aston Villa
Heaton joined newly promoted Premier League team Aston Villa on August 1, 2019, for an undisclosed sum estimated to be £8 million.
Heaton suffered a season-ending knee injury during a 2-1 win over his previous team, Burnley, on January 1, 2020, in a game in which his teammate Wesley also had a significant knee injury.
As Heaton’s injury persisted in September 2020, Villa acquired Emiliano Martínez from Arsenal to serve as their primary goalkeeper.
Heaton returned to football for Aston Villa U23s on November 10, 2020, in a 2-2 draw away to Burnley U23s in Premier League 2.
Heaton made his first-team debut following his injury on December 26, 2020, as an unused substitute in a 3-0 home win over Crystal Palace.
On May 28, 2021, it was confirmed that Heaton would leave Aston Villa at the end of his contract.
Return to Manchester United.
After being released by Aston Villa, Heaton agreed to return to Manchester United on July 2, 2021, 11 years after leaving them. He agreed to a two-year contract with a one-year extension option.
Heaton made his first-team debut on December 8, 2021, replacing Dean Henderson in the 68th minute of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League encounter against Young Boys.
On January 10, 2023, Heaton started his debut EFL Cup game for United against Charlton Athletic. Heaton kept a clean sheet as United won 3-0 to go to the semi-finals.
On February 1, 2023, he started the second leg of the semi-final against Nottingham Forest, keeping a clean sheet as his team won 2-0 (5-0 on aggregate) and advanced to the final.
International career
Heaton made his junior national team debut in 2001, appearing in four games. After that, he played for England in different age groups until joining the senior squad.
Against Ireland in a friendly, he made his senior debut. He also appeared in the UEFA Euro 2016 qualification match against Slovenia and the Euro 2016 warm-up against Australia.
Family
He married Taralee Heaton and has two children together.
Net Worth
Tom Heaton is a young athlete, and football has greatly increased his wages. The player’s net worth is estimated to be £10 million by 2024