Alessia Russo’s spectacular rise to the pinnacle of football

Alessia Russo has risen to prominence in the last few years, becoming a dominant force in women’s football, but how did she get there?

Russo was born in Maidstone, England in 1999 into a family of athletes. Her father, Mario, played for the Metropolitan Police in the upper tiers of the non-league football pyramid in England.

Russo’s talent was spotted early, joining the Charlton Athletic academy at a young age. During her time at Charlton, Russo joined Casey Stoney in the tunnel as a mascot, a sign of things to come as Stoney would manage Russo during her spell at Manchester United, per the ManUtdWomen X account.

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Following her stint at Charlton, Russo moved to Chelsea where she captained their development team, per The Football Association website.

With opportunities at Chelsea limited, Russo moved to Brighton and Hove Albion with the ambition to break into their first team.

Like many in the professional women’s game, Russo took the opportunity to play in the US collegiate system, becoming a North Carolina Tar Heel.

Russo was teammates with future Arsenal teammate Lotte Wubben-Moy during her stint in Chapel Hill, who spoke to Graham Hays of ESPN in 2019. During this conversation, Wubben-Moy spoke about US college football, saying, “I think it's made us better people for it, and definitely better soccer players”.

Both Wubben-Moy and Russo were star performers for North Carolina, with the latter netting 28 times in just 58 appearances for the Tar Heels, per AOL.

Unfortunately for Russo, her time in North Carolina was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She returned to English football, signing for Manchester United in September 2020, per the FA.

Russo had impressed the England coaching staff enough during her time in America to earn herself a first cap for her country in March 2020.

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During a World Cup qualifier against Latvia in December 2021, Russo would break the record for the fastest hat-trick in English history. Coming on as a second-half substitute, Russo would slot home three times in just 11 minutes as the Lionesses would run out 20-0 winners, per The Independent.

England Women, under the stewardship of Sarina Wiegman, have risen to the top of the women’s game in the space of a few short years. The highlight was the Lionesses’ triumph in Euro 2022 with Russo scoring four goals in the tournament, per the BBC.

Arsenal Women has been one of the standout clubs in the European game for some time, so when they come calling, it is hard to ignore. In January 2023, the North London club placed a then-record-breaking bid of £400,000 for Russo, which was ultimately turned down.

Manchester United’s reluctance to lose Russo was understandable, but it couldn’t prevent her from joining Arsenal just six months later following the end of her contract, per The Guardian.

Shortly after her move to Arsenal, Russo and the rest of the Lionesses squad would head to Australia for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, where they would finish as runners-up to an uber-talented Spain squad.

Now a fixture in the Arsenal squad, Russo is flying the flag for women’s football as Arsenal continues to breach new ground by playing as many games as they can at the Emirates Stadium. This decision has worked, with crowds flocking to the Emirates time and again, including a record-breaking sell-out against Manchester United in February 2024, per Sporting News.

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