Giulia Dragoni
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
.jpg) Dragoni in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 November 2006 | ||
| Place of birth | Milan, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Roma (on loan from Barcelona) | ||
| Number | 15 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2015–2020 | Pro Sesto | ||
| 2020–2022 | Inter Milan | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2023 | Inter Milan | 4 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Barcelona B | 31 | (8) |
| 2023– | Barcelona | 5 | (0) |
| 2024– | → Roma (loan) | 27 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021–2022 | Italy U16 | 3 | (1) |
| 2021–2023 | Italy U17 | 16 | (8) |
| 2022–2023 | Italy U19 | 5 | (2) |
| 2023– | Italy | 12 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 04:03, 09 September 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:30, 16 July 2024 (UTC) | |||
Giulia Dragoni (Italian: [ˈdʒuːlja draˈɡoːni];[1] born 7 November 2006) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Roma, on loan from Liga F club Barcelona, and the Italy national team.
Early life and Inter Milan
Born in Milan, Italy,[2] Dragoni started playing football at the age of four,[3] joining grassroots club Franco Scarioni,[4][5] before moving to Cimiano,[3][4][5] and then entering the junior academy of Pro Sesto in 2015.[3][6] Here, she first came to prominence for her performances in mixed-sex junior championships,[2][7] where she played until 2019,[2] earning the nickname "Little Messi".[2][5][8]
Having first joined Inter Milan on trial for a youth tournament in 2018,[9] Dragoni officially entered the club's youth sector in the summer of 2020.[2][5][7] During the 2020–21 campaign, following the halt of several youth leagues due to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic,[9] she was promoted to Inter's under-19 squad, aged just 14,[5][9] and contributed to a third-place finish in the national championship.[7][10]
Having been promoted to Inter's first team at the start of the 2022–23 season, under head coach Rita Guarino,[5][11] Dragoni made her professional debut on 20 November 2022, coming in as a substitute for Ghoutia Karchouni in the 74th minute of a goalless league draw against Fiorentina.[5][12] Having just turned 16 years old, she became the youngest player to ever feature in a Serie A match since the league had achieved full-time professional status.[8] She went on to make three more appearances for Inter's senior team before the end of 2022.[5][7][8]
Barcelona
2022–23 season
On 31 January 2023, Dragoni officially joined Spanish side Barcelona on a permanent deal, signing a contract until June 2025.[2][5][13] In the process, she became the first non-Spanish member of the women's team setup to reside at La Masia.[2][5][8] Having been registered for the club's reserve team, Barcelona B,[8][13] she scored her first goal for the side on 5 March, in a 3–0 league win over Athletic B.[14] In her first season at the club, she helped Barcelona B win the second-tier title,[8][15] having scored four goals in ten matches;[7][15] she was also included in the first team's title-winning Champions League squad, despite not featuring in any of their matches.[8][16]
2023–24 season
At the start of the 2023–24 season, Dragoni was still primarily part of Barcelona B but was included as a regular training player of the first team.[17] She made her first-team debut on 26 November 2023, coming on as a substitute for Mariona Caldentey in the 83rd minute of a 4–0 Liga F win over Athletic Club.[6][18][19] In the process, at 17 years and 19 days, she became the youngest non-Spanish player to make her debut for a senior Barcelona team (in women's or men's football).[6][20] On 13 December, she made her Champions League debut, coming on for Esmee Brugts in the 78th minute of a 6–0 win over FC Rosengård in the group stage,[21] and a month later she made her first start and scored her first goal for Barcelona's first team, opening the scoring in a 6–0 Copa de la Reina win over Fundación Albacete.[20][22]
Barcelona completed a quadruple, with Dragoni becoming the first Italian player to win the Women's Champions League, also winning the league title, the Copa de la Reina and the Supercopa.[23][24] While she was given few opportunities to play for the first team, Spanish newspaper Sport stated that she "brought something different" every time she featured for Barcelona.[25]
Loan to Roma
On 17 July 2024, Dragoni renewed her contract with Barcelona until 2027,[26][27] and subsequently joined Serie A club Roma on a season-long loan.[27][28] Dragoni made her Serie A debut with Roma on 30 August 2024, coming on as a substitute for Benedetta Glionna in the 58th minute of a 2–2 draw with Lazio.[29]
International career
Dragoni has represented Italy at various youth international levels, having played for the under-16, under-17[2][5] and under-19 national teams.[8][30]
In March 2023 she received her first call-up to the Italian senior national team for the friendly match against Colombia.[31] In June of the same year, she was included in the preliminary squad for the 2023 FIFA World Cup by head coach Milena Bertolini.[32][33] She subsequently made her debut for the Azzurre on 1 July, coming on as a substitute in the second half of a friendly match against Morocco, which ended in a goalless draw:[34][35] at 16 years and 236 days, she became the youngest person to represent an Italian senior national football team in the 21st century,[8] but did not beat the all-time record, originally established by Carolina Morace in 1978.[8][16]
The following day, she was officially included in the final 23-player squad for the 2023 FIFA World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, aged just 16;[8][36][37] in the process, she became the second youngest player to get called up for the tournament, behind only Casey Phair.[38][39] On 24 July 2023, Dragoni started in a 1–0 group stage win over Argentina:[40][41] at 16 years and 259 days,[40] she became the youngest player to ever represent the Azzurre in the competition's history,[42][43] a record that previously belonged to Rita Guarino,[42][44] while also overtaking Giuseppe Bergomi as Italy's youngest player to take part in any World Cup match, including both men's and women's football.[7][44] She also became the second-youngest European player to feature in a FIFA Women's World Cup game.[43]
