Gallery: Roma Women reach Coppa Italia semi-finals!

The Giallorosse, afforded a measure of comfort following last month's 6-3 first leg victory, never looked under serious pressure in the quarter-final return leg - especially after Martina Piemonte pounced from close range to secure an early lead.

Vanessa Bernauer then lashed home her third goal in as many games for Betty Bavagnoli's side to end the tie as a contest, before Luisa Pugnali rounded off the scoring in the final 10 minutes.

A last-gasp goal for the visitors proved only a consolation, with the tie ending 9-4 on aggregate.

Roma Women will now face Fiorentina in the semi-finals of the competition, after La Viola beat Hellas Verona 8-1 on aggregate. The two sides have met once already this season, drawing 0-0 at Tre Fontane in the league.

The first leg is scheduled for March 13, with the return pencilled in for April 17. The final is currently scheduled to take place on April 27.

In truth much of the hard work in reaching the final four had been done in the first leg and, with a three-goal advantage to play with, Betty Bavagnoli's side always had a measure of control.

The coach opted to rotate her options somewhat, with Jenny Bitzer making a first start for the club in defence and Federica Di Criscio operating in a less-familiar central midfield role.

With Elisa Bartoli absent for the first time this season the captaincy went to 19-year-old midfielder Giada Greggi; the Rome-born teenager responding with a tenacious and determined display for her side.

“I’m Roman and a Roma fan, so it’s an incredible feeling to wear the captain’s armband – especially because it belongs to an unparalleled captain like Elisa,” Greggi said afterwards.

“I want to thank the coach and my teammates for the opportunity they have given me.”

It was Piemonte, latching on to a low Annamaria Serturini free-kick, who opened the scoring after five minutes - and then turned provider soon after to allowe Bernauer to continue her scoring streak.

Roma were not always at their fluent best but created plenty of chances throughout the game, with Serturini, Di Criscio and Bernauer among those to go close.

In the second half, it was Bitzer's long free-kick over the top that found Zecca in space - and the forward picked out Pugnali perfectly for the third goal.

Roma CF got a late consolation for their efforts, but by then the tie had long since gone - with Roma moving on to the semi-finals in their first season as a professional side.

“It’s always great to play here at Tre Fontane, an amazing stadium,” Bavagnoli said afterwards.

“We’ve achieved something today. We fully deserved that too, even if we weren’t at our best.”

See more photos from the game in the gallery below.

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