While Sarina Wiegman's Lionesses are preparing for their Euros defence, the next generation are showing that the future is also bright
There might only be one England player in the NXGN 2025 list, but that is more to do with the worldwide depth in quality when it comes to teenage talent in the women's game, rather than any lack of candidates in a country that won the last European Championship and reached the final of the most recent World Cup.
While those accolades are related to the senior game, the Young Lionesses have come close to replicating such feats over the last couple of years, too. It's been a terrific two years for England's Under-17s, with a run to the semi-finals of the Euros in 2023 bettered in 2024 by their qualification for the final of that competition and a fourth-placed finish at the World Cup. The U19s also had a big 2024, reaching the semi-finals of their Euros again after 11 years of either failing to qualifying or failing to get out of the group stage.
Such results at major tournaments serve to underline the quality coming through the England youth ranks, quality that Sarina Wiegman has shown she will reward with senior call-ups when the time is right, as players like Aggie Beever-Jones, Laura Blindkilde Brown and Ruby Mace will attest to.
So, who are the potential future Lionesses that fans of the women's game in England should be keeping an eye on? GOAL picks out 15 players who were born on or after January 1, 2006, who could develop into stars…
Getty ImagesMichelle Agyemang (Arsenal)
England's sole representative on the NXGN 2025 list, Michelle Agyemang's consistent goal-scoring record for the Young Lionesses caught the eye a while back. She netted four times in three games at the 2023 U17 Euros, three times in four games at the 2024 U19 Euros and she appears to be taking the step up to the U23s well, too, netting twice against Germany in February, just two weeks after her 19th birthday.
No doubt aiding her development this season is a loan spell in the Women's Super League, after playing for Watford in the Championship last term. Agyemang signed for Brighton back in September and has been developing well in Dario Vidosic's unorthodox system and style, playing a little wider at times in a role she believes is helping her to improve her creativity and ability in one-v-one situations.
It's as a centre-forward that she will hope she can come to the fore with England and Arsenal, her parent club, in due course though, and she certainly has the potential to be a star on both fronts given her wonderful talent and complementary physical profile.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesLola Brown (Chelsea)
One of three England players to make the Team of the Tournament at last year's U17 Euros, Lola Brown was electric in her team's run to the final. The 17-year-old racked up two goals and two assists in four games, with the highlight of her campaign a match-winning finish against France in the final round of group games to secure top spot for the Young Lionesses, and she put in some great performances at the U17 World Cup later in the year, too.
However, perhaps the greatest indication of her promise is that Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor has started to give the youngster a look-in with the Blues' first-team. Brown has been in the squad regularly this season and made her senior debut back in November, in the Champions League win over Celtic. That's no mean feat in a squad as star-studded as Chelsea's.
With a desire to run at her marker to try and make things happen, it doesn't take long to realise why Brown is so exciting either. Surrounded by top forwards like Lauren James on a day-to-day basis, she'll be learning plenty and, given the style of play of many of the club's wingers, unlikely to lose her direct and positive approach.
Getty ImagesMadison Earl (Arsenal)
Arsenal is the best-represented club on this list by some distance, with their academy having a strong record at producing plenty of homegrown talent. With players like Leah Williamson and Lotte Wubben-Moy there to look up to, these teenagers can see a genuine pathway into the first team, and Madison Earl is one of those looking to follow it.
A bright attacking midfielder, Earl won the Golden Ball as Arsenal's U21s won the prestigious FIFA Youth Cup in May 2024, despite being just 17 years old at the time. She's a stalwart in the U19s and boasts an impressive goal-scoring record throughout the youth teams, especially for a midfielder.
After signing her first professional contract at Arsenal back in January, the teenager is now looking to get some senior experience under her belt. She spent the first half of her 2024-25 season at Bristol City and is now with Sheffield United, where she'll hope to provide an attacking spark that can steer the Blades clear of the Championship's relegation battle.
Getty ImagesLaila Harbert (Arsenal)
Another product of the Gunners' academy, Laila Harbert is a more defensive-minded midfielder who also signed her first professional deal at Arsenal in January. Captain of England's U17s, her leadership was evident throughout a remarkable 2024 for the Young Lionesses, as they reached the U17 Euros final and the last four at the World Cup a few months later.
She's been racking up plenty of experience on loan in the Championship over the last couple of years, too, starting 11 times for Watford in the 2023-24 campaign and finding herself an immediate regular at Southampton following a January switch. That will do Harbert's development wonders as she looks to ascend to new levels, having already shown so much promise to date.
