Alessia Russo
Alessia Russo is an English professional footballer, born on 8 February 1999. She plays as a forward for Arsenal in the Women's Super League and for the England national team. Before turning professional she played college soccer for the North Carolina Tar Heels.
The IFFHS ranked Russo No. 2 in its Women's World Best Player list for 2025, behind only Aitana Bonmatí. France Football placed her third at the 2025 Ballon d'Or Féminin, The Guardian also had her third and ESPN fourth. She is on the 30-player shortlist for the 2026 Ballon d'Or Féminin.
After brief teenage spells at Chelsea and Brighton, Russo joined Manchester United in 2020, where she twice finished as the club's top scorer. She moved to Arsenal on a free transfer in 2023 and in 2024–25 shared the WSL scoring title with Khadija Shaw, was named FWA Women's Footballer of the Year and won the Women's Champions League. For England she scored an 11-minute hat-trick against Latvia, the fastest in the country's history, and she is a two-time European champion who won Goal of the Tournament at Euro 2022.
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