Arsenal confirm wonderkid's ACL injury, with recovery plan established

Arsenal have received bad news about an anterior cruciate ligament injury of one of their players.

Arsenal Women have suffered with ACL injuries over the past couple of years, with the Gunners seeing the likes of Leah Williamson, Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead suffer ligament damage.

Now, the club have been dealt another hammer blow, with one of their younger stars suffering on international duty.

Arsenal women star Michelle Agyemang has suffered an ACL injury

Michelle Agyemang, currently on loan with Brighton & Hove Albion, has suffered an ACL injury while on international duty with the Lionesses.

Agyemang was the Young Player of the Tournament at Euro 2025, bailing Sarina Wiegman's team out with goals from the bench in Switzerland, before Arsenal agreed to send the teenager back to Sussex for another season to continue her development.

But in a statement on Arsenal.com, the Gunners confirmed that Agyemang sustained her injury off the bench for England against Australia this week.

The club have also noted that the centre-forward will be out for the rest of the season, as she begins her road to recovery – but haven't commented on whether Agyemang will return back to London Colney for treatment or remain with Brighton.

“We are in close contact with Brighton as we determine a treatment and recovery programme for Michelle,” the statement read.

ACL injuries in women's football are worryingly common, with even the best players in world, such as Sam Kerr and Alexia Putellas, suffering with the injury, as consultant orthopaedic surgeon Nev Davies told Sky Sports in 2024 that it was an “epidemic” in the women's game.

“We are so behind the rest of the world when it comes to injury prevention: it's embarrassing,” Davies was quoted as saying, with between 25 and 30 players missing the Women's World Cup in 2023 due to ACL injuries.

Studies suggest that women are six times more likely to suffer ACL injuries compared to men, and 25 per cent less likely to make a full return, with not nearly enough research into the injury when it comes to women's football.

There have been plenty of factors cited, such as the increase in workload with the rise of the women's game, the lack of women-specific kit and even physiological and biomechanical factors – but ACL injuries are still hugely prevalent and a major issue in the women's game right now.

Michelle Agyemang is named by FourFourTwo as one of the most prominent wonderkids to sign in Football Manager 26.