Arsenal head coach Jonas Eidevall says that the decision to allow loanees Michelle Agyemang, Laila Harbert and Katie Reid to play against their parent club in the Adobe Women’s FA Cup this weekend was tough.
The trio joined second tier club Watford on a dual-registration basis at the start of the season. The Golden Girls face Arsenal in an Adobe Women’s FA Cup fourth round tie at Meadow Park on Sunday afternoon.
Arsenal boss Eidevall could have opted to cup-tie his three youngsters, however, he has decided to grant them permission to play against their parent club. Eidevall says that it was a tough decision to make but one that he feels will benefit Arsenal in the longer term.
“No, it wasn’t [an easy decision] because I think it’s two mindsets going against each other,” Eidevall said when speaking in the pre-match press conference. “One is that it’s a competitive game and my first thought is that you should do everything in your power to get every inch on your side otherwise, you wouldn’t respect the opposition and that’s the worst mistake you could do. The other part is that these are three players that I believe so much that they can be first team players for Arsenal Women in the future. The only reason why we have them on loan at Watford is to get first team experience.
“If I look at it from their perspective, to be able to play in an FA Cup tie at a sold out Boreham Wood, that’s as good of an experience that it can be. If I deny them of that experience, do I also deny them of their potential development? When I think of the short-term and long-term benefits, I am willing to give up a competitive advantage in order to invest for the future of Arsenal Women.
“Short-term, I’m not happy about the decision because they are three really good players that can cause us problems. Long-term, I can really see their potential to become first team players and I think it is the right decision because it’ll develop them the most.”
Watford arrive in Boreham Wood as the bottom club in the Barclays Women’s Championship. Despite The Golden Girls’ lowly position, Eidevall had positive things to say about the second tier side.
He said “They’ve been true to their style of play, they’re brave and they’re keeping their heads up high. They know with some of the injuries that they had and so on that it’s been hard on them and that they probably could have had a couple more points in the Championship.
“They keep believing. They knew it wasn’t going to be an easy season from a results perspective in the Championship but I think that they go into the second half of the season with a lot of belief and they can rightfully do so.”
Arsenal’s Adobe Women’s FA Cup fourth round tie against Watford kicks-off at 1pm on Sunday afternoon. Tickets for the match have now sold out.