‘Agent of chaos' Michelle Agyemang is Lionesses' trump card

Yahoo

5 days ago

Michelle Agyemang is the player Sarina Wiegman does not want to have to call upon. If she is coming off the bench, it likely means England need a goal. But there is no better player in that scenario than Agyemang.
Dubbed an 'agent of chaos', the 19-year-old has kept the Lionesses' Euro 2025 campaign alive – twice.
First she was the saviour in their quarter-final with Sweden, which they eventually won on penalties. The forward had only been on the pitch for 11 minutes when she slotted the ball home from close range with the composure of a player far more experienced than she is to level the scores.
Then she scored the equaliser in the semi-final against Italy, albeit a little later on this occasion. She arrived in the 85th minute and a little over 10 minutes later she found the net. When a Lauren Hemp cross fell to her in the box, she drilled a low shot between the legs of both a defender and the goalkeeper to take another match to extra time – and England duly won 2-1 to reach the final.
Agyemang is a player who gets you off your seat, a raw talent that still needs refining – but that is what makes her so exciting to watch. That we have seen only glimpses of what she can do makes her all the more intriguing.
Agyemang, who is contracted to Arsenal but spent last season on loan with Brighton and Hove Albion, burst onto the international scene when she scored a superb volley just 41 seconds into her debut in April. She had only been called up to the senior squad because of an injury to Alessia Russo and, despite that sensational strike, it was unclear whether Wiegman would gamble on selecting her for the Euros.
The forward was an unused substitute in the subsequent Nations League games against Portugal and Spain and it seemed as if her chance may have gone. But when Wiegman named her 23-player squad in June, Agyemang's name was on the list. A wildcard, perhaps? Certainly someone who would benefit from experiencing a major tournament.
Little did we know just how vital Agyemang's inclusion in this squad would be. When England trailed France 2-0 in their opening match, she was brought off the bench in the 86th minute. 'Go on and change the game,' Wiegman had said to her young forward. She did just that, playing her part in the build-up to Keira Walsh's volley. The Lionesses could not find an equaliser but there was an argument to say that, had Agyemang's introduction come sooner, England might have done.
She did not feature against Netherlands or Wales because the Lionesses were in control. But with England 2-0 down in their quarter-final with Sweden, Wiegman turned to Agyemang in the 70th minute – and the agent of chaos responded.
She harassed Sweden's defenders, gave England a greater presence in the box and, after Lucy Bronze had pulled a goal back, Agyemang levelled 103 seconds later.
Stepping up in pressure situations
'When we finished the game the other night I just said, 'Mich, you are clutch!'' England defender Esme Morgan said. 'That's twice now she's stepped up in pressure situations, come off the bench and made an incredible impact.
'She's someone that we know we can turn to in stressful moments to be a presence, holding the ball up and linking play, making runs in behind. She's a really hard worker and has an incredible sense for the positioning she should take up in the box to get on the end of things and finish chances.'
There was some concern when Agyemang picked up a yellow card. One of her strengths is her physicality and Wiegman has previously told the forward to temper that in training. 'In duels I think she needs to calm down a little bit as she makes some fouls,' Wiegman said in May. 'You don't want to almost destroy your opponent.'
Bronze, on the other hand, has told her to go even harder. 'We did have that conversation, me and Sarina,' Agyemang said earlier in the tournament. 'I've been working on it in training and I think I've improved on it but Lucy was saying she thinks it's a super strength of mine.'
There is a contrast between Agyemang's persona on the pitch and that off the pitch, as Morgan explains: 'I love Mich, she's such a wonderful human being.
'She's so intelligent, really soft spoken and quite shy until you get to know her but she's hilarious when she comes out of her shell. I'm so proud of the impact she's been able to make.'
It is unique to see a player's international career take off before her club one. Agyemang joined Arsenal at the age of six – initially as a defender before converting to a striker. She was part of an academy team that became accustomed to winning every week but when she reached under-12 level, the club decided to challenge their players by entering them into a boy's league.
'That was a big shift,' Agyemang told Goal.com earlier this year. 'We were losing every week, we were getting dominated physically, even mentally, it was a struggle. But I think that kind of shaped the way I am as a player and a person.'
Agyemang made her Arsenal debut in 2022 at the age of 16. After a handful of first-team appearances, she joined Watford on loan for the 2023-24 season and scored five goals in 10 games despite injuries limiting her action. She played 22 times at Brighton last season, with most of those appearances coming from the bench, and scored five times.
Agyemang's goal against Sweden was significant and not only because it kept England's tournament alive. Born in Essex, she is of Ghanaian descent and is only the 25th player with black ancestry to be capped by the Lionesses. The equivalent figure for the men's team is 122.
The Lionesses named an all-white starting XI for each game of Euro 2022 and the lack of diversity in the national team and beyond has been an ongoing issue. The Football Association has made concerted efforts to address this and increasing diversity across the game is a key area for the governing body. But there is no greater impact than visibility.
Her rise has been rapid and remarkable. Just four years ago Agyemang was a ball girl at Wembley when Wiegman's England beat Northern Ireland 4-0. Now she is the player her country turns to when they need some magic.
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