Hegerberg: Roma set-up better than PSG

Andrine Hegerberg appeared on a panel about women’s football as part of the Festival dello Sport in Trento on Sunday.

Joining the Roma midfielder were Italy coach Milena Bertolini, coach Carolina Morace, Fiorentina captain Alia Guagni, Ludovica Mantovani, the head of FIGC’s Women’s Football Division, and Barbara Facchetti, the head of delegation for the Italian national side.

“When I first got a call from an Italian team, I didn’t know much about Serie A,” said Hegerberg. “I received a lot of offers and listened to the proposals and it was Roma that made me understand how much they wanted me and how much they care about the women’s football project. The set-up is better here than at Paris Saint-Germain.”

Were you surprised by the size of the crowd on the first day of the season against AC Milan?

“I had no idea how many fans would turn up. I was surprised by the atmosphere and by the coverage in the papers and on social media. We need to keep that up.”

Would you recommend coming to play in Italy to your sister Ada and other foreign players?

“It doesn’t depend on them so much as it does on the quality of Italian football. When the product is interesting and competitive, why would it not attract my colleagues?”

Do the rules of women’s football need changing?

“I think the most important thing would be to give female players the same training and match conditions that the men get. For example, playing on real turf pitches or the most advanced synthetic pitches would really help to improve the standard of the football.”