PLAYER PROFILE: GLORIA MARINELLI

Her smile and enthusiasm are her calling card. Good vibes, always. Gloria Marinelli is talented, creative, and outgoing, she keeps the group going with her energy. She's always involved and well-liked, but she's also more than just that. When springs into action on the pitch, she flashes absolute quality, she knows how to change a game with a single dribble or a curling shot or with a run into the fray. In the summer, she made one of the most complicated leaps in football, moving from Inter to AC Milan. The city may not have changed, but almost everything else has.

An important and considered choice she made to “refind inspiration and trust”, as she said herself in her first interview as a Rossonere player. She didn’t hesitate to get involved, to risk it all for her career that was destined for greatness. Gloria has always been a key feature of the Azzurre youth sector, winning bronze medals for Italy in the U17 Euros and U17 World Cup, both in 2014. With her goals, she brought Inter into Serie A and was a leader for the Nerazzurre in the top flight.

The 2022/23 season saw her path slow down for the first time due to an injury. AC Milan was shaken up. She has had a huge impact, leaving her mark right from the first summer friendlies and culminating in her goal against Atlético Madrid in the Amos Cup. Then her league debut came against Roma where she bagged the goal that made it 2-2 and put an end to her 385-day-long dry spell in Serie A. In our exclusive interview during the week, Gloria had this to say: "We are working well with Coach Corti, with enthusiasm and very intensely. We're expecting a tough game against Roma, but our objective is to grow and improve every day."

Now, with the same enthusiasm, she will want to guide her teammates towards a return leg with a different ending to the Matchday 1 disappointment. The last few weeks have also been a source of unforgettable joy for Gloria who obtained her master's degree in Sport and Management on 30 October, defending her thesis from the Azzurre training camp. A double milestone, as a few days earlier she also celebrated her return to the Italy squad having not been involved since 2019.

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