#alas. i doubt that we'll see it anytime soon (if ever)

[three-bunnies-in-a-trenchcoat]

So this is pretty much confirmation that both the Traveler and the Archons are mirroring the dragons, then, although you've got to wonder when the Archons' mirroring started. Did they have a separate fighting style and moveset before the gnoses/elemental authority? Would Zhongli, Venti, and Ei start using it again if they gave up their elemental authority like Focalors did, and would Nahida develop her own? Was the mirroring a deliberate decision, or was it a gradual subconscious change? Does the elemental authority(s) have a consciousness that deliberately influenced them to change how they fought?

[cookiepotofchaos]

End of Transfer Window: Where did the U-19s Lionesses go?

In amongst the other, higher profile transfers this window, I've been following where the players from England's U-19s Euros team went.

I don't expect many of them will have regular 1st team starts or an abundance of minutes. The younger players need their minutes carefully managed as part of continuing to avoid over-training, and even the older players have to be carefully transitioned into senior football to avoid long-term difficulties and injuries.

So, here's a round-up of the U-19s Lionesses, and what they're up to this coming season.

It's quite long, so below the cut :)

U-19 England Players

Goalkeepers

Katie Cox (Chelsea/Staying) - Has replaced Emily Orman as the third string goalkeeper. Orman has moved to London City Lionesses (where she seems to have had a decent start, good to see her getting game time). I don't think Cox played in any pre-season friendlies (or at least those which have been reported on), but I suspect if she plays at all, it will be in the occasional FA Cup/Women's League Cup match. Alas, for third-string goalkeepers it is a life with a lot of time spent on the bench.

Hannah Poulter (Brighton and Hove Albion/New Signing) - Signed with Brighton and Hove this Summer after coming up through Reading's academy and spending last year in the USA playing college football. Similarly to Cox, it looks like she will be their third string goalkeeper; so perhaps a similar situation for her with some game time in matches they have a very high likelihood of winning.

Defenders

Evie Rabjohn (Manchester United/Staying) - Unfortunately tore her ACL during the Euros and is look at being out for the majority, if not the entirety, of 2024/25. She only signed a contract with Manchester United last year, though I couldn't find the length, so hopefully she'll be back for the 2025/26 season.

Cerys Brown (Chelsea/Loaned to London City Lionesses) - A decent loan decision, I think. She had good moments during the Euros but seemed to find some of the more physical play challenging and struggled for spells in some games. Prior to the Euros she was out with an injury since March, which probably contributed to this. The Championship is developing year-on-year, and the football standard is getting higher, so a good place to get a young player ready for the WSL.

Lucy Newell (Manchester United/Staying) - Was dual-registered to Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion, but the latter club announced her departure at the end of last season. She isn't currently listed on Manchester United women's squad list on their website, but she was in Marbella with them for training. She's 17, so one of the younger team members, so likely staying with the academy team this season.

Brooke Aspin (Chelsea/Loaned to Crystal Palace) - The first surprise for me. I thought she had a decent Euros and prior to that she was a key first team player at Bristol City. I thought she might stay with Chelsea's first team this year, but not only did she not, she didn't go to the USA or feature in any other pre-season games. I doubt we'll ever find out why that decision was made, but it's the one that surprised me. I have to wonder what the mental impact of being in a team that struggled so much is. I hope that Crystal Palace have a better season that Bristol City did, but the issues of the vast differences between the WSL and Championship (never mind further down the pyramid) have been discussed for years and don't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon.

Ria Bose (Sporting CP/New Signing) - Announced she was leaving Chelsea in May this year and has recently signed for Sporting CP. I remember her standing out in the England vs Spain match in the first half, despite England's loss, for some clever footwork and play down the wing. I don't know much about Sporting CP to be honest, but hopefully she gets some minutes over there to develop.

Katie Reid (Arsenal/Staying) - She had a good pre-season with Arsenal, performing well in the USA against Washington Spirit and Chelsea. When Mayra Ramirez was subbed on in the Chelsea game, I wondered how Reid would adapt. Ramirez is a very good player and not easy for a youngster to defend against, but Reid kept her composure well. However, she is also only 17 so I expect her minutes will be carefully managed in the upcoming season. She'll benefit from some well-chosen opportunities to get minutes in the WSL, but with her promise, you wouldn't want Arsenal to risk over-working her ahead of the transition to senior playing.

Araya Dennis (Tottenham Hotsput/2024 Signing) - She signed a professional contract with Tottenham Hotspurs earlier this year and she was in a number of photographs from pre-season games, so it's looking hopeful that she might get first team minutes this coming season. I'm not entirely sure which position Dennis will end up playing, because she's listed as a Forward but seems to have played as a RW, RM and an RB in different matches I've watched. Versatile young player, so interesting to see where she develops with Spurs.

Midfielders

Ashanti Akpan (Chelsea/Loaned to Birmingham City) - Another loan to the Championship I understand; Akpan had good moments and shaky moments in the Euros and I suspect some more first team time outside of the WSL will benefit her greatly. She's had a bright start at Birmingham City from what I've seen, so it looks to be working well.

Lexi Potter (Chelsea/Loaned to Crystal Palace) - Another Chelsea player loaned to Crystal Palace, and another loan that I think makes sense. Potter had some good moments, including some lovely placed set pieces in the Euros, but there were many moments where she got in the final third, got goal tunnel vision and took a shot with a low likelihood of troubling the keeper when a team-mate was in a much better position. Getting used to that kind of decision-making takes time and experience, and she'd probably struggle to get that with Chelsea at the moment (though with their injury concerns in the midfield, who knows...)

Madison Earl (Arsenal/Staying) - Earl has been in a few shots from pre-season training for Arsenal but isn't part of the first team squad. This makes sense again as she's a younger player and Arsenal have already brought a few of their academy players into the squad, so having too many youngsters whose minutes you need to manage carefully to safeguard them would be challenging for a competitive team.

Louanne Worsey (Birmingham City/Staying) - Worsey came on as a substitute right at the end of the 0-0 draw with Bristol City in the second game of this season. If this is signs of what's to come, another young player that could slowly gets more minutes building up over the season as she transitions into senior team playing.

Forwards

Mia Enderby (Liverpool/Staying) - Seems to already be highly valued at Liverpool. She played 557 minutes across 14 matches last season, an average of 40 a match, which is a solid but not excessive number for a young player. Given the feedback for her so far, I expect that might well creep up a bit, though continuing to rotate her and manage her minutes will be important. She made a big impact in the Euros games when she came on, so interesting to watch her this upcoming season.

Michelle Agyemang (Arsenal/Loaned to Brighton and Hove Albion) - Another player who had good moments at the Euros. I am so interested to see how this loan works out. Brighton have six forwards, along with midfielders who push up into the attacking midfield positions. They do vary their formation, but have seemed to favour having three in the attacking third, so I'm optimistic this means a decent likelihood of development minutes for Agyemang (though, of course, all can change with a new season). She's such a promising young player and could grow into an incredible forward; I hope she'll get decent experience at Brighton. I did think maybe she might have stayed at Arsenal, but I suspect she wouldn't be guaranteed the minutes up front with the players she would be competing with for minutes.

Freya Godfrey (Arsenal/Staying) - Another of Arsenal's young players who got decent time in the pre-season games and showed promise. I believe at 19 she is older than the other (three?) young players who have moved into the first team squad and she was out on loan to Charlton last season where she made 16 appearances and put in solid performances. This could be the season where she starts to come into the first team for decent minutes, like Mia Enderby has done with Liverpool.

Poppy Pritchard (Manchester City/Loaned to Crystal Palace) - Crystal Palace have a fair few young players on loan, don't they! Anyway, much like Lexi Potter, another loan I understand. Poppy Pritchard had a decent Euros and has the makings of a good forward player, but that decision making of when to shoot, when to pass, avoiding goal tunnel vision that needs to come with experience and game time just isn't going to happen at Manchester City. Hopefully another good development season upcoming.

Vivienne Lia (Arsenal/Staying) - I think Vivienne Lia is brilliant. She is already showing signs of reading the game well and making clever plays on the wings, her set pieces are particularly strong for such a young player, and she is a decent winger on either side. During pre-season, against Washington Spirit, Eidevall chose to player her in the fullback positions, but seemingly with the instruction to also join the attack as much as possible, which didn't seem to work as well for Lia's play. In the game against Southampton, however, I believe she assisted two of the goals from set-pieces. I'm looking forward to her getting some minutes this season (without being over-worked) and getting opportunities to develop because I think she's going to be an incredible player in a few years.

Katy Watson (Sunderland/Staying) - Another player I noted for strengths in the Spain game. Has come on for a few minutes so far in matches for Sunderland this season, had decent development minutes last season as well. Sunderland are having a rough start to their Championship campaign, so depending on how that goes it could be a very long, difficult season for Watson. If she's getting good minutes, as rough as it'll be, she'll get a chance to continue developing as a player. We'll see how Sunderland get on, though, it's only been a few matches.

Georgia Mullett (Aston Villa/Staying) - Playing in six games last season for Villa, she got about 15 minutes per game. She sustained an injury during the Euros, but while I haven't been able to locate an update she was training with the senior squad in the last few weeks, so hopefully her recovery has gone well and she'll be seeing more squad time.