Which Arsenal players could be called up for the u-20 Women’s World Cup?

England’s preparations are under way, but injuries, selection battles and club decisions could shape Arsenal’s representation in Poland.

The Under-20 Women’s World Cup will take place in Poland from 5 to 27 September. We are still waiting to see whether UEFA will boycott the tournament as part of the ongoing dispute between UEFA and FIFA. The BBC has confirmed that the French Football Federation (FFF) will take part. There has been no indication from The FA, although the England squad is preparing for the tournament with a friendly away to Portugal Under-20s this week.

As a reminder, the tournament is not part of the FIFA international calendar. That means there is no compulsory release of players, so clubs can prevent their players from attending. Emma Hayes recently hinted at the issue in relation to the United States youth national teams.

“I consider the Under-20 event the biggest platform for young players to play in,” Hayes said in an exclusive interview with ESPN. “I keep thinking about so many of our players that, whether they miss the Under-17, how critical it is for them to come through the Under-20s.”

France manager Philippe Joly made a similar point. “I’ve already picked my squad in my head, I’ve already decided in my head, but there may be a slight difference between what I want to do and what the clubs will allow me to do. First, we will draw up a provisional squad of 55 players and talk to their clubs to see if they would be willing to let their players take part. It’s a crucial stage for knowing whether or not we’ll have all our greatest assets at our disposal.”

The tournament is open to players born between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2010. Among Arsenal’s current players on professional contracts, the following are eligible: Michelle Agyemang, Katie Reid, Jessie Gale, Cecily Wellesley-Smith, Vivienne Lia, Maddie Earl and Sophie Harwood. Former Arsenal player Laila Harbert, who recently left the club, has also captained the England Under-20 side.

Looking at the five matches England Under-20s have played in 2026, Wellesley-Smith appears to be a certainty for the tournament and should be a starter. She has spent the past year on loan at various clubs and is currently with Rosengård in Sweden.

Lia and Gale also have a strong chance of making the squad and could provide useful options from the bench. Harwood has an outside chance after receiving her first Under-20 call-up and will need to impress during the Portugal camp to secure one of the remaining places. Earl has not featured in recent Under-20 squads, so her chances appear limited.

Then there are two players who, in my view, would be starters for England Under-20s if fully fit, Agyemang and Reid, both of whom are recovering from ACL injuries. There is no indication that either is yet ready to return to competitive football. Recovering from that type of injury takes time.

We recently saw Megan Finnigan, Everton’s captain, make her first appearance 18 months after suffering the same injury. Reid was injured in early November 2025 and Agyemang at the end of October 2025. They are now around 10 months into their rehabilitation and were both part of Arsenal’s training camp in La Manga, Spain.

Both players know the majority of the England Under-20 squad well from playing together at Under-17 and Under-19 level, so integrating them into the squad would present no difficulty. If they were fully fit, I believe they would be selected. However, based on the training photographs and videos released by Arsenal, that does not appear to be the case. The tournament looks as though it has come around about a month too early for them, as neither is likely to have played a competitive match for Arsenal by the time Lydia Bedford names her 21-player squad.

My expectation, therefore, is that three current Arsenal players, Wellesley-Smith, Gale and Lia, will be selected, alongside former Gunner Harbert.

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