Melania Gabbiadini

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Melania Gabbiadini
20151007 UWCL St. Polten-Spratzern - ASD CF Verona 5312 (cropped).jpg
Gabbiadini with AGSM Verona in 2015
Personal information
Full name Melania Gabbiadini
Date of birth (1983-08-28) 28 August 1983 (age 38)
Place of birth Calcinate, Italy
Height 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) [1]
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
Bolgare
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2000–2004 Bergamo 146 (150)
2004–2017 AGSM Verona 150 (153)
National team
2003–2017 Italy 114 (45)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 July 2017
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 25 July 2017

Melania Gabbiadini (born 28 August 1983) is an Italian former football forward. After beginning her career with Bergamo in 2000, she later joined AGSM Verona in 2004 and went on to captain the team, until her retirement in 2017. [2] She won five Scudetti with the club. [3]

Contents

A fast winger, [4] with an eye for goal, Gabbiadini was an experienced player at international level, who made over 100 caps for the Italy women's national football team. She is a veteran of Italy's 2005, 2009, 2013, and 2017 UEFA Women's Championship campaigns, being voted to the Squad of the Tournament in the 2013 edition of the tournament. [5] She was voted the Serie A Female Footballer of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, [6] [7] [8] and was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

Club career

Gabbiadini began her career with Bergamo in 2000, winning the Serie B title with the club in 2002. [9] After the club's bankruptcy in 2004, she moved to AGSM Verona, the club with which she remained until her retirement in 2017. [10] With Bardolino Verona, she won the Serie A title during the 2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, and 2014–15 seasons, as well as the Coppa Italia during the 2005–06, and 2006–07 seasons, and the Supercoppa italiana in 2005, 2007, and 2008; she was also voted the Serie A Female Footballer of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. [11] [12] With Verona, she also reached the semi-finals of the 2007–08 UEFA Women's Cup. [13]

International career

After representing her country at under-21 level on 5 occasions, Gabbiadini made her senior debut for Italy on 16 April 2003, in a 5–0 away friendly win over the Netherlands. [14] Included in the squad for UEFA Women's Euro 2005 in North West England, [15] she scored twice in a 5–3 defeat to Norway as Italy made a group stage exit.

At UEFA Women's Euro 2009 in Finland, Gabbiadini played in all four games and scored in a 2–0 win over Russia as the Italians reached the quarter-finals. [16] Four years later, national coach Antonio Cabrini named Gabbiadini in his selection for UEFA Women's Euro 2013 in Sweden. [17] After scoring two goals in the group stage against Denmark [18] and hosts Sweden, [19] she played the entire match in the Italians' 1–0 quarter-final defeat to perennial champions Germany. [20] She was voted to the Squad of the Tournament for her performances. [5]

On 16 February 2016, ahead of the 2016 UEFA Women's Champions League Final media launch held in Reggio Emilia, she was awarded a commemorative cap and medal by UEFA for having obtained over 100 caps for the Italian national team. [21] [22] In November 2016, she was included in Italy's squad for the 2016 International Women's Football Tournament of Manaus, which was held from 7 to 18 December. [23]

She retired after the UEFA Women's Euro 2017. [24] However, she finished her international career with 114 appearances and 45 goals. [25]

Goals scored in official competitions
CompetitionStageDateLocationOpponentGoalsResult
Flag of England.svg 2005 UEFA Euro Qualifiers2004–09–25 Niš Flag of Yugoslavia (1992-2003); Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006).svg  Serbia and Montenegro 1–02–1
First Stage2005–06–12 Preston Flag of Norway.svg  Norway 1–1 2–43–5
Flag of Finland.svg 2009 UEFA Euro Qualifiers2007–10–31 Parma Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 5–05–0
2008–02–16 Villacidro Flag of Ireland.svg  Republic of Ireland 2–14–1
2008–05–24 Buftea Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 1–0 5–16–1
First Stage2009–08–31 Helsinki Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 1–02–0
Flag of Germany.svg 2011 World Cup Qualifiers2009–09–19 Domžale Flag of Slovenia.svg  Slovenia 3–0 4–08–0
2009–11–25 Francavilla Flag of Armenia.svg  Armenia 3–0 6–07–0
2010–03–31 Ascoli Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 1–11–1
2010–06–19 Montereale Flag of Slovenia.svg  Slovenia 1–06–0
2010–06–23 Vantaa Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 2–13–1
Flag of Sweden.svg 2013 UEFA Euro Qualifiers2011–10–22 Prilep Flag of North Macedonia.svg  North Macedonia 7–09–0
2011–11–19 Pruszków Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 1–0 2–0 5–06–1
2011–11–23 Trani Flag of Greece.svg  Greece 1–02–0
First Stage2013–07–13 Halmstad Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 1–02–1
2013–07–16 Halmstad Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 1–31–3
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg 2015 World Cup Qualifiers2013–09–20 Tallinn Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 2–0 4–05–0
2014–02–13 Novara Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic 1–0 2–06–1
2014–04–10 Cluj Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 2–02–1
2014–05–08 Skopje Flag of North Macedonia.svg  North Macedonia 5–0 7–011–0
2014–06–14 Prague Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic 3–04–0
2014–10–25 Rieti Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 2–12–1
2014–10–29 Lviv Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine 1–22–2
2014–11–22 The Hague Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 1–01–1
Flag of the Netherlands.svg 2017 UEFA Euro Qualifiers2016–09–16 Lurgan Ulster Banner.svg  Northern Ireland 2–03–0

Style of play

A quick forward and a prolific goalscorer, Gabbiadini was known for her technical ability and her pace on the ball, and was often deployed as a winger or as a main striker. She also stood out for her leadership and work-rate throughout her career. [4] [24]

Personal life

As well as being a footballer, Gabbiadini is a tattoo designer. [26] Her younger brother Manolo plays as a forward for Sampdoria and has represented the Italy men's national team. [4] [27]

Gabbiadini's participation at UEFA Women's Euro 2017 was widely noted by Dutch viewers due to her striking resemblance to former professional footballer Wim Kieft, who coincidentally played in the Italian Serie A around the time of her conception. Television show Voetbal Inside mentioned this and jokingly questioned whether he would be her actual father. [28]

Honours

Club

AGSM Verona [29]
Bergamo [29]

Individual

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