‘It challenges you’: Laila Harbert on playing with boys and her journey from Arsenal to Portland

Midfielder is preparing for NWSL semi-final on her latest loan and hopes road will lead her to Gunners' first team

The headline on Arsenal's website in early August 2023 was short and sweet. Teenage trio to join Watford on dual agreement," it read. That trio included Michelle Agyemang and Katie Reid, two players whose names were known to the keenest of fans then and who have since become part of mainstream conversation for hugely positive reasons. More recently they have hit the headlines for a more devastating reason, having both sustained anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

In any footballer's career a bit of good fortune is needed, alongside a manager being brave enough to take a chance on you. The knee injury that led to Leah Williamson missing the start of the Women's Super League season created the space for Reid to be given an opportunity in the first team, while an Alessia Russo ankle knock led to Agyemang's first England call-up in April. Both subsequently shone, making the forced interruptions to their respective professional journeys especially cruel.