Michelle Agyemang led from the front, says school captain

Lioness Michelle Agyemang has been described as a “coach’s dream” but she was a nightmare if you were against her in training, said her former high school captain.

The 19-year-old striker from South Ockendon, Essex, was named as the Euro 2025’s young player of the tournament in recognition of her performances in the run-up to the Lionesses’ win on Sunday.

Hannah Warner, 20, from Southchurch, Essex, said she captained an 11-year-old Agyemang when she attended Southend High School for Girls and knew she would go far.

“The main thing that I always noticed about her as a player from very young is… [she] does lead from the front,” Ms Warner said.

“In training, you would absolutely hate to be put on a different team to her – I’m so glad that I was on the same team as her for most of the time.

“Even in small games during training I would absolutely hate to have to come up against her because she’s the kind of player [who] once she’s running at you, there’s not a whole lot you can do about it,” she added.

Ms Warner said her school did not have a girl’s football team before a new PE teacher joined when she was in Year 8.

“[The teacher] was like ‘I’ve got really exciting news, there’s a girl who plays [for] Arsenal Academy who is joining our school next year’ and obviously that was the most exciting news I think I could have ever heard.

“[Because at] the last Euros she was a ball girl, it’s very easy to think that this has all kind of come out of nowhere and she’s been a very fast success story, but it has been a very long time in the making.

“I knew I wanted to keep an eye on her because I knew that she was gonna she was destined to make something out of it.”

Ms Warner, who is now president of University of Southampton Ladies Football Club and a player for the first team, said she still loves the game.

She said being the former captain of the England star will be her claim to fame for the foreseeable future.

“I’ll be milking this as long as I can,” she joked.

“I’ll definitely be pulling that one out in two truths and a lie.”