Adrian Heath to face former club as Minnesota United host Everton in July friendly | OneFootball

Adrian Heath will go up against his former club as Minnesota United host Premier League side Everton on July 20, the club announced on Tuesday.

The nine-time English champions will come to Allianz Field as part of a pre-season US tour over the summer as they prepare for the start of the 2022/23 Premier League campaign.

It will be the first time these two teams have met, but Loons boss Heath is already very familiar with the Toffees. Across seven years at Goodison Park (1982-89), the forward scored 93 goals in 307 appearances across all competitions, winning two league titles, an FA Cup, and a European Cup Winners Cup. In 2018, Heath was inducted into the club's 'Everton Giants' hall of fame.

"To say I’m excited would be an understatement," Heath said in a statement. "Everyone knows my feelings towards the club, the best thing that happened in my football life was playing for Everton. I couldn’t be more excited to welcome them to Minnesota. It will be a great occasion at Allianz Field, and I know we will have incredible fan support. They have an unbelievable traveling fanbase and I’ve no doubt they will bring their voice to Saint Paul. It’s an honor to host one of the premier clubs in world football."

MNUFC CEO Shari Ballard added: "We are thrilled to be able to bring the best of the world’s game to our Minnesota soccer community. Not only is Everton a storied club, but their meaningful history with Adrian will add an extra dimension of fun to the game.

"In addition to this game, we have a fantastic lineup of soccer coming to Allianz Field throughout the summer, including another international friendly against SC Paderborn 07 in June and the MLS All-Star game in August. We look forward to sharing all of these experiences with our fans and our community."