The WSL is just around the corner. Meet the young talents set for a breakout season

Author:

Kristina Němcová @stinanemcova

The WSL, the top tier of women’s football in England, kicks off on 4 September. This season, the league has expanded by two teams for the first time. Alongside established stars such as Alessia Russo and Bunny Shaw, a host of young players will also be looking to make their mark in what could prove to be a breakout season. So, who are Queenballers’ future queens to watch?

Layla Drury

Layla Drury only recently turned 17, but she is already making a name for herself in women’s football. She particularly caught the eye in January, when she came off the bench in a cup tie against Burnley and became Manchester United’s youngest-ever goalscorer, across both the women’s and men’s teams.

Drury has since chosen to represent England rather than Wales, having previously played for the latter at U17 level. As an extra birthday present, she also signed her first professional contract with Manchester United shortly after turning 17. So with the club whose academy she came through and the one she has supported since she was little.

It will be interesting to see how she develops under new head coach Eva Olid and how long she has to wait for her WSL debut.

Lexi Potter

Chelsea know how to develop young talents. Perhaps the best example is academy graduate Aggie Beever-Jones, who has gradually gone from an exciting prospect to an established member of the team trusted by both Sonia Bompastor at club level and Sarina Wiegman with the Lionesses.

Another Blue who could follow a similar path is Alexia Potter. She has been at Chelsea since the age of eight, when she first joined the academy, and at 17 became the youngest player in England at the time to sign a professional contract. After spending last season on loan at Crystal Palace, she returns to Chelsea as a player ready to play a genuine role in the first team.

Lisa Baum

Arsenal had been keeping a close eye on young German winger Lisa Baum for some time before signing her from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig. Her playing time is likely to be limited at first, with Renée Slegers seemingly viewing her as one for the future, while the more experienced Chloe Kelly and Caitlin Foord are likely to remain her preferred options in the biggest games.

Even so, the arrival of such a highly rated young winger is an exciting one for Arsenal and Baum is certainly a player worth keeping an eye on this season.

Smilla Holmberg

The name of this Swedish defender, who can also play on the wing, will already be familiar to anyone who follows the WSL, not just Arsenal fans. Despite only joining the Gunners in January 2026, the Hammarby academy graduate made quite an impression in just half a season and quickly became a fan favourite among the Gooners.

Hammarby have a strong track record of developing players for the highest level, and Holmberg is further proof of that. Just a few weeks after graduating from high school, she managed to establish herself in the starting XI for the Swedish national women's team. OL Lyonnes were also interested in the youngster, but she ultimately opted for north London, where she was given an impressive amount of playing time from the outset.

She then made history against Leicester, becoming only the second teenager to be directly involved in three goals in a single WSL match. Holmberg scored twice herself before setting up Leah Williamson for another.

Giulia Dragoni

The former AS Roma standout has earned the nickname “Little Messi”, which in itself gives you an idea of just how highly rated she is. As the arrival of Veerle Buurman last season showed, Chelsea are committed to developing young talent and have a strong track record of doing so.

Despite her age, Dragoni is no stranger to women's football at the highest level. She gained valuable Women's Champions League experience with her former club AS Roma and also found the back of the net four times across two seasons in the competition. An impressive numbers considering the Italian side failed to reach the knockout stages.

Rachel Maltby

Aston Villa are still working to establish themselves among the WSL’s top sides. While they are yet to achieve major success, they have already shown on more than one occasion that they are capable of taking points off the league’s favourites. And Maltby is further evidence that the club’s academy and youth development are heading in the right direction.

An Aston Villa academy graduate, Maltby already picked up an impressive number of first-team minutes last season. There is every reason to expect Spanish head coach Natalia Arroyo to continue giving the youngster opportunities as she looks to take the next step in her development

Sophie Jackson

Unlike the other names on this list, Sophie Jackson is still waiting to make her debut in the senior team. She is also the only goalkeeper featured on the list. A position where opportunities for young players can be particularly hard to come by. However, Spurs boss Martin Ho has shown that he is willing to put his faith in young talent, as demonstrated by the arrival of highly rated Norwegian youngster Signe Gaupset from SK Brann, who quickly proved she can deliver in the WSL.

Jackson will still face plenty of competition for minutes. As well as first-choice goalkeeper Lize Kop, she will be competing with new signing Salma Panengstuen, who has also arrived from SK Brann. But the England U19 international has already shown she has the quality to make her case for a place in the team.