Giallorosse hoping to underline progress against Fiorentina

Giada Greggi and Federica Di Criscio are hopeful Roma Women can underline their rapid improvement with an eye-catching result against Fiorentina on Sunday, as one of Italian women’s football's biggest sides come to town.

La Viola head to Stadio Tre Fontane within touching distance of both AC Milan and Juventus at the top of league table, while Betty Bavagnoli’s side continue to climb the standings after an understandably slow start to the campaign.

But the game is a great opportunity for the side to underline the extent of their potential.

“Fiorentina are one of the biggest sides in the league,” midfielder Greggi told Roma TV.

“They are a very strong team, physically powerful, and have plenty of players with international experience. But will try to play our best, going out there with confidence, staying 100% focused from the first whistle and giving everything we have.”

Speaking to Il Romanista, defender Di Criscio underlined the growing confidence within Bavagnoli’s squad – especially after a recent run of five games unbeaten.

“We are going forward trying to play our way, knowing we can have our say in any game,” Di Criscio said. “We are not the same side you saw at the start of the season and we will make life hard for anyone.

“Against Fiorentina we will be at home and we will need to be respected. We will keep pushing on, working hard, and I believe that the results will speak for themselves in the end.”

She added: “As a squad we needed to get to know each other, we had never played together. It was also not so easy to communicate, because there are some foreigners in the squad who were still learning the language – but they also add a lot for us with their experience.

"After the game against Florentia [the team’s first win] you could see the desire to bring home a result. We deserved that, after all the work we had put in during the first few months. We are united as a group and we realise that together we can achieve something significant.”

Both players expressed their delight at having the opportunity to represent Roma, as the Giallorosse embark on their first adventure in women’s football.

“To get the call from Roma was so exciting, because I am both Roman and Romanista – I could not have asked for anything better,” Greggi said.

“My big aim is to reach the Champions League with Roma, and then to win a few trophies – the Coppa Italia, hopefully in future even the league. My other big aim is to one day receive a call-up from the national team.”

Di Criscio added: “I signed on with the Roma project with great enthusiasm, because I felt the club were ready and willing to invest in us as players. I agreed with the approach in a lot of ways. I believe in this club, and what they are trying to do.

“Rome is different and it’s definitely exciting to play here. Tre Fontane is our home and we always feel the fans are really behind us – it’s great to walk down the street and have people recognise us. I want to thank the club for helping raise our profile.

“The team spirit is absolutely vital – we came together this year and it’s not easy to bond as a group like we have done. The coach has done a lot for us, because she has always believed in our strength as a squad.

"She is vital for us, not just tactically but from a personal perspective too - she has helped us grow as people a lot.”