Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 7 November 2006 | ||
Place of birth | Milan, Italy | ||
Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||
Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Barcelona B | ||
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– | Barcelona B | 10 | (4) |
2023– | Barcelona | 3 | (0) |
International career‡ | |||
2021–2022 | Italy U16 | 3 | (1) |
2021–2023 | Italy U17 | 16 | (8) |
2022– | Italy U19 | 5 | (2) |
2023– | Italy | 6 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 January 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 1 December 2023 |
Giulia Dragoni (born 7 November 2006) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Liga F club Barcelona and the Italy women's national team.
Born in Milan, Italy, [1] Dragoni started playing football at the age of four, [2] joining grassroots club Franco Scarioni, [3] [4] before moving to Cimiano, [2] [3] [4] and then entering the junior academy of Pro Sesto in 2015. [2] [5] Here, she first came to prominence for her performances in mixed-sex junior championships, [1] [6] where she played until 2019, [1] earning the nickname "Little Messi". [1] [4] [7]
Having first joined Inter Milan on trial for a youth tournament in 2018, [8] Dragoni officially entered the club's youth sector in the summer of 2020. [1] [4] [6] During the 2020–21 campaign, following the halt of several youth leagues due to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, [8] she was promoted to Inter's under-19 squad, aged just 14, [4] [8] and contributed to a third-place finish in the national championship. [6] [9]
Having been promoted to Inter's first team at the start of the 2022–23 season, under head coach Rita Guarino, [4] [10] 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. [4] [11] 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. [7] She went on to make three more appearances for Inter's senior team before the end of 2022. [4] [6] [7]
On 31 January 2023, Dragoni officially joined Spanish side Barcelona on a permanent deal, signing a contract until June 2025. [1] [4] [12] In the process, she became the first non-Spanish member of the women's team setup to reside at La Masia. [1] [4] [7] Having been registered for the club's reserve team, Barcelona B, [7] [12] she scored her first goal for the side on 5 March, in a 3–0 league win over Athletic B. [13] In her first season at the club, she helped Barcelona B win the second-tier title, [7] [14] having scored four goals in ten matches; [6] [14] she was also included in the first team's title-winning UEFA Women's Champions League squad, despite not featuring in any of their matches. [7] [15]
At the start of the 2023–24 season, Dragoni was officially promoted to Barcelona's first team, while still being a part of Barcelona B's roster. [16] 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. [5] [17] [18] In the process, at 17 years and 19 days, she became the youngest non-Spanish player to make her debut for Barcelona's senior team – either in men's or women's football –, [5] [19] overtaking the previous record by Lionel Messi (who was 17 years and three months old at the time of his debut). [5] On 13 December, she made her UEFA Women's Champions League debut, coming on for Esmee Brugts in the 78th minute of a 6–0 win over FC Rosengård in the group stage. [20] On 13 January 2024, she made her first start and scored her first goal for Barcelona's first team, opening the score in a 6–0 Copa de la Reina win over Fundación Albacete. [19] [21]
Dragoni has represented Italy at various youth international levels, having played for the under-16, under-17 [1] [4] and under-19 national teams. [7] [22]
In March 2023 she received her first call-up to the Italian senior national team for the friendly match against Colombia. [23] In June of the same year, she was included in the preliminary squad for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup by head coach Milena Bertolini. [24] [25] 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: [26] [27] at 16 years and 236 days, she became the youngest person to represent an Italian senior national football team in the 21st century, [7] but did not beat the all-time record, originally established by Carolina Morace in 1978. [7] [15]
The following day, she was officially included in the final 23-women squad for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, aged just 16; [7] [28] [29] in the process, she became the second youngest player to get called up for the tournament, behind only Casey Phair. [30] [31] On 24 July 2023, Dragoni started in a 1–0 group stage win over Argentina: [32] [33] at 16 years and 259 days, [32] she became the youngest player to ever represent the Azzurre in the competition's history, [34] [35] a record that previously belonged to Rita Guarino, [34] [36] 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. [6] [36] She also became the second-youngest European player to feature in a FIFA Women's World Cup game. [35]
Dragoni mainly operates as a midfielder in the mezzala role; [6] she is best known for her dribbling skills, [6] [8] as well as her ball control, her passing and her tactical intelligence. [6]
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