England forward Michelle Agyemang is eager to carve out her own distinctive identity after bursting onto the scene in spectacular style.
The 19-year-old Arsenal striker announced her arrival with a goal 41 seconds after coming off the bench for her senior debut in April’s Nations League loss to Belgium, and earned her second cap late on in the Lionesses’ Euro 2025-opening defeat to France on Saturday.
Though the cameo was short, Agyemang made a big impression, sparking life into an England attack that, until Keira Walsh’s 87th-minute goal, had not registered a single shot on target, at times looking like she might equalise and make it two international goals in as many appearances.
“In terms of mirroring my game, I think I want to be a unique player,” Agyemang said. “Obviously there’s things I take from other people, but I want to be my own type of player and bring my own type of input to the game.”
The teenager’s trajectory might have looked different had her Arsenal team-mate Alessia Russo not been forced to withdraw from that Nations League squad.
Agyemang, the youngest player in manager Sarina Wiegman’s squad, was drafted in as a replacement, and opened her England account two days after her first senior call-up.
80’ makes her senior debut.
— FIFA Women's World Cup (@FIFAWWC) April 8, 2025
81’ scores a worldie.
Michelle Agyemang knows how to introduce herself. 😮💨👏 pic.twitter.com/G1lDjWabuW
The buzz already building in north London has spread to the national set-up, and Agyemang is quickly becoming an expert at handling the hype.
She said: “To be fair, for me, in terms of pressure, I think most of the pressure comes from myself,” she said. “I don’t try to listen to the noise.”
Aygemang recently returned to her parent club following a loan spell with Brighton. In Switzerland, she has leaned on Russo, describing her Arsenal and England team-mate as “so consistent in the way she plays, the way she trains, and you see it on the pitch”.
She is also a big fan of Lauren James, calling the Chelsea forward “one of the most technically gifted players I have ever seen”.
England know Wednesday’s Netherlands encounter is likely to be a must-win if they want to keep their European title defence alive.
On Saturday, Wiegman, who Agyemang describes as “like a mum to us almost… who has put a lot of trust in me” told the forward to “just go and change the game” in her major tournament debut.
It was a mission – even without a goal – she arguably accomplished, making a case for playing time in their critical second group-stage encounter, though Agyemang is grateful for whatever experience she can get.
She added: “It’s easy to look at the time and think there’s not enough time left – that’s the beauty of the game. It only takes 10 seconds to make an impact.”
