There is less than 36 hours to go before the team kick off their Euro 22 campaign. At the New York Stadium in Rotherham, led by Milena Bertolini, the Azzurre will play the final match of the first round of group games at 21:00 (CEST) against Corinne Diacre’s team, who are third in the FIFA world rankings and one of the favourites to lift the trophy. The Transalpine are unbeaten in 16 consecutive games and are the only team to have not let a goal in during qualifying; a statistic highlighting the difficulty for Gama and Co.

The long preparations for the tournament are finally coming to a close, with Girelli and Di Guglielmo facing the media to talk about the feeling within the group two days before the opening match. Both players have had different experiences with the national team, and in international tournaments, and both are experiencing the build-up in a different way.

One has scored 35 times in 49 appearances under the leadership of Milena Bertolini, and was one of the leading figures in winning the country’s hearts over in 2019. Another is one of the new faces in the squad who, thanks to her flexibility to cover different areas of the pitch and her tireless work up and down the right side, has found more and more opportunities in the Head Coach’s line-up. Out of the two, only Girelli took part in the extraordinary World Cup run, whilst Di Guglielmo, three years ago, flew to France to cheer on the team as a fan. Together, they are now ready to once again impress the Italian public and try to become known as the “Ragazze Europee” (the European girls).

“With respect to 2019, many things have changed” – the Juventus forward opened up with at the press conference – “But what is still the same is our determination to fight and make an impression. I feel I still have a lot of motivation to improve as a player wearing this special shirt. One thing’s for sure: we want to make our people proud”. The tension and excitement is starting to build in the camp and awaiting them in the opener is the strong Lyon defender Wendie Renard and the fearsome front trio of Katoto, Malard and Diani.

Up first is one of the big guns, but Italy are not losing any sleep over it nor is it spoiling their dreams. After a five-week training camp, with a daily dose of background music chosen by DJ’s Girelli, Rosucci and Piemonte, the team cannot wait to hear and sing the national anthem notes of Mamelli. “France are an extremely strong team, and have talented players in every position, so it makes no sense to focus on their individual quality” – added the number 10 – “We need to stay grounded and play intelligently. On paper, they are the group favourites but we have gained a lot of respect from our opponents for our results in these last few years, and we know that we are able to match them out there. We’re where we want to be but we’re not just settling for that; it’s up to us to make this journey unforgettable”.

Di Guglielmo also shared her thoughts and feelings to the journalists present in Blackburn on the eve of the game: “Being here is a dream come true, I’m so happy to have been able to get here and I hope it continues for a long time” - said the Roma full-back – “I’m trying to find the right balance between emotion and ratonality whilst getting swept along with the positive atmosphere in the group. You never get used to wearing these colours, it’s like it’s always the first time. I’m sure that if I play, I will have the same feelings as those since I first started playing football”.

In a recent interview, the Head Coach declared that she sees a lot of herself in Lucia, who is soon to finish her studies in Industrial Chemistry. It has been a hard-working journey to reach this stage but she has done so with method, effort and dedication; attributes that continue her to develop every day. It’s an incredible story that still has more chapters to be written, starting with the France game: “This is my first ever international tournament and it’s great to experience the build-up together with the squad” – concluded the 25-year old with Pisa – “We are all supporting each other, and I believe that this togetherness and availability are our strong points. We will need to defend well on Sunday and try to press hard to keep France away from our 18 yard box. We’ll have to be aware of their defenisve movements because they will try to get wide and make a lot of crosses to feed their forwards, who are technically and physically strong”.

In the afternoon, with a full squad, the group will travel to Rotherham and then put the final touches in place at the New York Stadium at 20:15; the session will be open to the media for the first 15 minutes. Prior to that at 19:30, Milena Bertolini and Sara Gama will speak to the media ahead of the game on Sunday, where it is expected to be a sell-out.