Despite a friendly against Feyenoord on the 7th, the Arsenal women will be eager to return to competitive football with a win over Watford in the FA Cup on the 14th of January.
Most will be surprised that, despite the fact that Arsenal and Watford have an excellent relationship, they’ve never played each other in a competitive game.
In terms of the two clubs’ relationship, Arsenal women’s youth players have always been known to join Watford ahead of other championship clubs for their development, either on loan or through dual ownership.
Michelle Agyemang, Laila Harbert, and Katie Reid are now on loan. The trio have a bright future ahead of them, and Watford manager can’t help but be grateful that Arsenal trusts them with their best abilities, something he acknowledges his club and Arsenal women have developed a mutual connection that he values.
Concerning Arsenal and Watford’s relationship, Damon Lathrope, the Watford FC Women Head Coach, acknowledged on the Online Gooner Fanzine: “And we make sure that Arsenal know that.
“One thing we back ourselves on is that any player that comes to us will get a good experience. Yes, we’re a part-time team, but we don’t operate like a part-time team. We’re very professional in the way we work. We really try to help them on the pitch by coaching them properly, and I think Arsenal acknowledges that and recognizes that their players get a really good experience with us and they get looked after properly, which means they’re probably more willing to send their best talent to us, which is absolute gold dust for us.
“I’m not afraid to say that even at the tender age of 16s and 17s, they’re still probably some of our better players. And they really help us and Arsenal know that we can really help them along their journey in giving them first-team exposure, giving them exposure to pressure environments, playing in front of fans, playing with people for whom that is their livelihood. It aids both clubs massively.”
Regarding the Arsenal trio, he added, “She (Katie Reid) obviously plays up age groups, as do Michelle and Laila, for England. They’re identified as really, really high-potential players for their country, and we’re really, really fortunate to have Katie. If anything, it’s probably the toughest one, Katie, because she’s coming in as a center-half at 16 or 17 years old, and it’s probably harder to come in as a defensive-minded player at a young age than it is as an attacking or midfield player. Due to the physicality and due to mistakes probably hurting us a little bit more in that end of the pitch than the top end.
“But I can’t commend the work that she’s done so far this season any higher. She’s shown so much courage and bravery for such a young player, and it’s gotten to the point where we’re reliant on her. I’m very honest with the girls because I want to help them, and the way we want to play falls perfectly into Katie’s strengths. We know where she needs to work; she knows where she needs to work and improve to give ourselves the best chance of maximizing her potential. Honestly, it amazes me how developed and applied these players are for such young players. Again, I would not be surprised to see her go all the way in the game.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Laila, for instance, in eighteen months is competing for a first team spot with those names that you’ve just mentioned at Arsenal that are household names, that are world-class talents.
“We’ve literally only seen her for two games since then, which has been an absolute killer for us,” added Lathrope of Agyemang.
“In her first game back, she scores in the FA Cup; in her second game back, she scores two and assists one. So that shows you the impact that she has when she plays for us, and it shows you how much we’ve missed her in those four or five months that she was out injured. So we’re really excited for the second half of the season because we know the impact that she can have if we get a fit, healthy Miche, because she is an absolute super talent. She’s physically on a different planet, to be honest, and she ticks a lot of boxes for me. She’s technically very efficient. She’s a very good finisher, really powerful, quick, mobile.”
It’s great to see Arsenal women’s academy players being recognized for their growing abilities. The hope is that they can now push on and find their way into the Arsenal starting lineup in the next few years, and it seems that are all progressing very well indeed.
Michelle Maxwell
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Nice article. Hopefully the girls are able to play in next weeks game.