England U19s had full belief they were going to take three points from their opening UEFA Women's U19 Championship clash on Sunday, and West Ham United women’s team’s Princess Ademiluyi was at the heart of that charge.
With No9 on her back, the striker was unplayable in Tarnobrzeg, Poland, as Lauren Smith’s side secured a 2-1 success against Netherlands U19s to get their Group B campaign up and running in perfect fashion.
Helping her team come from behind after Zoë Zuidberg’s 44th-minute opener, 18-year-old Ademiluyi had a hand in both of the Young Lionesses’ goals at Stadion OSiR Wisła.
Just four minutes after half-time, the Hammers attacker clinically pounced at the back post with superb instinct to level proceedings before her prodded effort was turned into her own net by Netherlands defender Olivia Rademaker.
She could have come away with more, however, having seen a header dramatically cleared off the line at 2-1 before she was withdrawn from the encounter on 64 minutes. But Ademiluyi was all smiles after she opened her account, inspiring Smith’s team to a come-from-behind victory.
“Honestly, it feels surreal,” beamed Ademiluyi, speaking to Girls on the Ball post-match. “Obviously this is my first finals so to score, you can’t beat that feeling.
“We started off good in the first ten-15 [minutes], but obviously we dropped down. We conceded a goal which wasn’t ideal.
“Coming into the second half after we had a chat inside the changing room, I think we came back with real energy and it showed because we got two [goals] in about five minutes.
“It shows the power that we have and we knew we were going to win the game, we just had to follow through.
“After the first goal, I was full of just… I don’t even know what the word is! I just stood up like ‘yes!’ because it’s the best feeling. When I let it sink in, it’s my first goal in a tournament, so it just felt good.
“Obviously the second one came straight after and it was perfect timing. It was the perfect feeling.”
Ademiluyi, who was playing in her first match at a major tournament with her country having made her England debut in October 2024, has now notched five goals in her last two international matches, and six in her last seven.
It’s safe to say she’s enjoying flying the flag for England.
“It’s been going so well,” she said.
“We’ve been in for the past three to four weeks training and playing friendlies, just getting ourselves prepared for this, and I think it shows what we’ve done through that time, and we’re just ready to keep on going.”
The next test for the Young Lionesses will arrive on Wednesday when they face Portugal U19s - who fell to a 2-0 loss against Spain in their opening game - at Stadion OSiR Wisła (kick-off 4pm BST).
When asked about her side’s upcoming encounter, Ademiluyi was short and to the point in her response, showing the drive and energy in the England camp.
She added: “We’re ready for it, bring it on.”
