The Women’s National Team had their first afternoon training session at Coverciano today after they had gathered at the Federal Training Centre yesterday evening to prepare for their matches against Georgia and Malta, scheduled respectively for Friday 8 November (kick-off at 17:30 CET) at the Stadio Ciro Vigorito in Benevento and Tuesday 12 November (kick-off at 14:15 CET) at the Stadio Teofilo Patini in Castel di Sangro.

Italy, who are sitting top of Group B for European qualification with four wins from four, will attempt to consolidate their position by claiming home victories over teams they have already beaten on their travels during September and October. Due to injuries, Valentina Giacinti and Rachele Baldi were unable to join the squad, so Deborah Salvatori Rinaldi and Alessia Piazza took their places. Both play for AC Milan and both have been called up to the National Team for the first time in their careers. Coach Milena Bertolini commented on the forthcoming fixtures at a press conference: “We have two international level matches ahead of us. Our aim is to get points from these games, but we’ve seen that you can’t take anything for granted because women’s football is growing so much and it’s improving so much even in countries where there isn’t such a heavy tradition regarding the sport.”

After having struggled during the first few games of the season, it all clicked during their last match against Bosnia on 8 October as the National Team found their brilliance and their ‘ruthlessness’ again which they had shown at the World Cup in France. Milena Bertolini reflected on that good performance: “I’d like the team to pick up from where they left off in the last game against Bosnia, where they played really well and showed the right approach and the right intensity. The girls now seem to be in a better condition than they were for the first few games. This is to be expected given that they’ve been involved in a number of matches, whether in Serie A or the Champions League. Our Serie A has grown in terms of intensity because the girls have been put in a position where they’re able to train well. A lot of players have arrived from abroad, and this has made the league more physical and competitive, although we still need to improve from a qualitative point of view.”

Ranked 103rd and 113th in the FIFA ranking respectively, Malta and Georgia have so far been defeated three times each and have goal differences of -12 and -9: “We’ll be facing two sides who will look to keep it tight,” warned the Head Coach. They won’t give us any space, so it’ll be important to see a growth in the team’s character and be able to understand the tactical side of the game. It’ll be important to pick up the points because we need to win our games if we want to be involved in the 2021 European Championship. Just as important will be the quality of our play, a fundamental aspect to compete at international level.”

Bertolini also commented on what happened at the Stadio Bentegodi in Verona yesterday: “I understand Balotelli and the suffering he endured yesterday. Racism needs to be combatted in a strong manner, which includes taking decisive action. We must have the courage to suspend a game if it needs to be interrupted. Our culture needs to be worked on, we need to combat racism in schools so we can shape collective thinking. We mustn’t underestimate the problem or minimise it.

Squad list

Goalkeepers: Laura Giuliani (Juventus), Roberta Aprile (FC Inter), Alessia Piazza (Milan);
Defenders: Elisa Bartoli (AS Roma), Lisa Boattin (Juventus), Laura Fusetti (AC Milan), Sara Gama (Juventus), Alia Guagni (Fiorentina Women), Elena Linari (Atletico Madrid), Linda Tucceri Cimini (AC Milan);
Midfielders: Valentina Bergamaschi (AC Milan), Arianna Caruso (Juventus), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus), Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (AS Roma), Benedetta Glionna (Hellas Verona), Giada Greggi (AS Roma), Gloria Marinelli (FC Inter), Martina Rosucci (Juventus);
Forwards: Cristiana Girelli (Juventus), Deborah Salvatori Rinaldi (AC Milan), Daniela Sabatino (Sassuolo), Stefania Tarenzi (FC Inter).

Staff – Head Coach: Milena Bertolini; Assistant Coach: Nicola Matteucci; Women’s National Team Coordiantor: Annarita Stallone; Secretary: Alessandra Savini Nicci; Fitness Coach: Francesco Perondi; Goalkeeping Coach: Cristiano Viotti; Match Analyst: Marco Mannucci; Doctors: Luca Gatteschi and Antonio Ponzo; Physiotherapists: Daniele Frosoni and Matteo Cossa; Nutritionist: Natale Gentile.

Schedule

Sunday 3 November

20:00 CET - Arrival at the CTF in Coverciano

Monday 4 November

09:30 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

13:30 CET - Coach’s press conference

15:30 CET - Training (First 15 minutes open to the press)

Tuesday 5 November

09:30 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

13:30 CET - Players’ press conference

15:30 CET - Training (First 15 minutes open to the press)

Wednesday 6 November

09:30 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

16:00 CET - Departure for Benevento

Thursday 7 November

15:45 CET - Press conference at the Stadio Ciro Vigorito

16:15 CET - Training (First 15 minutes open to the press)

Friday 8 November

17:30 CET - Italy vs. Georgia

Saturday 9 November

10:00 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

16:00 CET - Departure for Castel di Sangro

Sunday 10 November

09:30 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

15:30 CET - Training (Behind closed doors)

Monday 11 November

10:30 CET - Press conference at the Stadio Teofilo Patini

11:00 CET - Training (First 15 minutes open to the press)

Tuesday 12 November

14:15 CET - Italy vs. Malta