Our Young Gun series gets to know the academy youngsters kicking off their careers at the Sobha Realty Training Centre.
Sophia Leonard spoke to us recently about making the step up to the under-21s and how she's adjusting to playing as a winger this season.
I've been at Arsenal for four years now, and as I've got older I've felt myself become a more experienced and established player in the squad. Making the jump from the under-16s to under-21s was hard at first.
Everyone around you is older, the competitiveness is high and it's a higher standard of football. It's my second season in this league now, so I know what to expect and I know how to play.
With the under-21s, we've done really well so far this year, beating Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City in the league. I started at Arsenal as a right-back, but this season I've been playing more and more as a right-winger.
Ever since John Bitting became our manager at the start of the season, he's trusted me to play in different positions to improve my versatility; there's a lot more freedom on the ball when you're a winger and I'm still expecting the coaches to tell me to take fewer touches!
I trained with the first team about a month ago, which was such a good experience. It's crazy when you see them at the Emirates or on the TV, when you know just how talented they are, and then you get the chance to paly with them.
One of the biggest differences (between academy and senior football) is the pace of the football. Their technical ability is so high that they're able to move the ball around so quickly. If you lose focus for a second, the ball's on the other side of the pitch. I was up against Mariona Caldentey in training too, so that wasn't easy!
All these experiences show me how close I am if I keep working hard. I've played with Viv Lia, Sophie Harwood, Cecily Wellesley-Smith and Jessie Gale, who have gone on to sign professional contracts with Arsenal and get loan deals to help them develop.
When you see their qualities and how they've progressed, it's inspiring. I'm also close with Niamh Peacock, who's on loan with Portsmouth at the moment, so we keep in contact while she's away.
"When you see their qualities and how they've progressed, it's inspiring."
Now I'm in my fourth year here, I've built some amazing friendships that are so important to have off the field. Sometimes it can be hard, because friends outside of football don't really understand why you can't come out at the weekend, whereas friends at Arsenal are in the same boat.
I see my friends from home as often as I can, so it's lovely to have both.
It's hard to balance academy football and school, especially while I'm working towards my A-Levels in theology, PE and business. There's pressure to study all the time, alongside training and matches, but I'm coping.
Away from Arsenal, I play for the Republic of Ireland youth teams and we've qualified for Round 2 of the Under-19 Euros, which was great. I don't think you can compare any international games to our academy games because each country has its own unique playing style.
Some of the players you're up against are the best in their country, so it's not only about understanding a variety of football, but also a huge technical challenge.
My aims for the future are to keep working hard, sign my first professional contract and hopefully reach a point where I'm playing the best level of senior football I can, whether that's in the WSL or WSL2.
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Young Gun: Sophie Harwood](https://www.arsenal.com/news/young-gun-sophie-harwood-0?utm_source=arsenaldotcom&utm_medium=embedded-article&utm_campaign=news)
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