From making her debut against England in 2013 to Thursday's game with Belgium, it has been ten years full of emotion for Cristiana Girelli after making her 100th appearance for the Azzurre. In the last few days, she reached 100 goals for the Bianconeri, and now she 100 caps to her name for the national side. “It's a number that still surprises me, I'm very proud to have achieved this milestone," said Girelli from the camp in Milton Keynes. "Each and every one of these appearances has been a different experience. Obviously, I would have liked to have celebrated it with a win, or at least a positive result, on Thursday, but it wasn't to be. I'm sure we'll bounce back soon."

At 32 years of age, the forward from Gavardo joins the select few who have donned the Italy shirt more than 100 times. Leading the special pack is Panico with 204 games to her name, followed by Morace, Zorri, Gama, Tuttino, Gabbiadini, Carta, Brenzan and Vignotto. Cristiana's Azzurre journey has been successful, with some unforgettable moments: “Thankfully, there have been so many great moments," she declared smiling away. "My debut comes to mind, my first European Championships in Sweden, the victories that took us to the 2019 World Cup, and, obviously, the wins we had in that tournament. It's hard to describe. I'll also add the recent home win over Switzerland that sealed qualification to the next World Cup, in the summer. But I share the highs and lows with my teammates, because the difficult moments are part of the game and help you to grow, as a player and a person."

In 2011, she got her first call-up for a friendly against Germany; in 2013, the game with the Three Lionesses saw her make her debut - who curiously by destiny will be the Azzurre's next opponents – and a few months later, grabbed her first international goal in a World Cup qualifying win over Romania. Since then, she has been an ever-present in the squad, and has dedicated her life to football and the Italy shirt, becoming a leading example for the younger players: "I'm pretty certain that everyone dreamed about representing their country as a child. I often say to younger players that they try to keep that spirit they had as a kid inside them, not take anything for granted and continue to have the drive and hunger to improve day after day."

From the memories of these past ten years, “that have flown by”, Girelli's focus is now on the upcoming games and objectives, but one above all else, “Knowing that the World Cup is only five months away fills you with excitement, also because just thinking about playing in it for the second time in a row doesn't happen every day," she concluded. "It's going to be a very different tournament compared to 2019 so we'll have to make sure we find ourselves ready. I can't wait to get out there and play, and above all perform well and help to take Italy as far as we can in the competition in Australia and New Zealand."