Italian footballer
Melania Gabbiadini
Full name
Melania Gabbiadini Date of birth
(1983-08-28 ) 28 August 1983 (age 40) Place of birth
Calcinate , Italy Height
1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)[1] Position(s)
Forward
Bolgare Years
Team
Apps
(Gls ) 2000–2004
Bergamo
146
(150) 2004–2017
AGSM Verona
150
(153) 2003–2017
Italy
114
(45)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 July 2017 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 25 July 2017
Melania Gabbiadini (born 28 August 1983) is an Italian former football forward . After beginning her career with Bergamo in 2000, she later joined AGSM Verona in 2004 and went on to captain the team, until her retirement in 2017.[2] She won five Scudetti with the club.[3]
Gabbiadini was an experienced player at international level who made over 100 caps for the Italy women's national football team .[4] She is a veteran of Italy's 2005 , 2009 , 2013 and 2017 UEFA Women's Championship campaigns, being voted to the Squad of the Tournament in the 2013 edition of the tournament.[5] She was voted the Serie A Female Footballer of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015,[6] [7] [8] and was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2016.
Club career
Gabbiadini began her career with Bergamo in 2000, winning the Serie B title with the club in 2002.[9] After the club's bankruptcy in 2004, she moved to AGSM Verona , the club with which she remained until her retirement in 2017.[10] With Bardolino Verona, she won the Serie A title during the 2004–05 , 2006–07 , 2007–08 , 2008–09 , and 2014–15 seasons, as well as the Coppa Italia during the 2005–06 , and 2006–07 seasons, and the Supercoppa italiana in 2005, 2007, and 2008; she was also voted the Serie A Female Footballer of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015.[11] [12] With Verona, she also reached the semi-finals of the 2007–08 UEFA Women's Cup .[13]
International career
After representing her country at under-21 level on 5 occasions, Gabbiadini made her senior debut for Italy on 16 April 2003, in a 5–0 away friendly win over the Netherlands .[14] Included in the squad for UEFA Women's Euro 2005 in North West England ,[15] she scored twice in a 5–3 defeat to Norway as Italy made a group stage exit.
At UEFA Women's Euro 2009 in Finland, Gabbiadini played in all four games and scored in a 2–0 win over Russia as the Italians reached the quarter-finals.[16] Four years later, national coach Antonio Cabrini named Gabbiadini in his selection for UEFA Women's Euro 2013 in Sweden.[17] After scoring two goals in the group stage against Denmark [18] and hosts Sweden ,[19] she played the entire match in the Italians' 1–0 quarter-final defeat to perennial champions Germany .[20] She was voted to the Squad of the Tournament for her performances.[5]
On 16 February 2016, ahead of the 2016 UEFA Women's Champions League Final media launch held in Reggio Emilia , she was awarded a commemorative cap and medal by UEFA for having obtained over 100 caps for the Italian national team.[21] [22] In November 2016, she was included in Italy's squad for the 2016 International Women's Football Tournament of Manaus , which was held from 7 to 18 December.[23]
She retired after the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 . However, she finished her international career with 114 appearances and 45 goals.[25]
Style of play
A quick forward and a prolific goalscorer, Gabbiadini was known for her technical ability and her pace on the ball, and was often deployed as a winger or as a main striker . She also stood out for her leadership and work-rate throughout her career.[4]
Personal life
As well as being a footballer, Gabbiadini is a tattoo designer.[26] Her younger brother Manolo plays as a forward for Sampdoria and has represented the Italy men's national team .[4] [27]
Gabbiadini's participation at UEFA Women's Euro 2017 was widely noted by Dutch viewers due to her striking resemblance to former professional footballer Wim Kieft , who coincidentally played in the Italian Serie A around the time of her conception. Television show Voetbal Inside mentioned this and jokingly questioned whether he would be her actual father.[28]
Honours
Club
AGSM Verona [29]
Bergamo[29]
Individual
References
^ "Forwards" . Italian Football Federation . Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ [1] Soccerway
^ "Calcio Femminile Bardolino - Prima squadra" . Archived from the original on 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2011-12-03 . ASD Bardolino
^ a b c Enea Zampoleri (26 May 2012). "Il senso dei Gabbiadini per il gol – Manolo e Melania si raccontano a Sportweek" (in Italian). Tutto Atalanta. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ a b c Paul Saffer (28 July 2013). "UEFA Women's EURO 2013 roll of honour" . UEFA.com. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ a b "Melania Gabbiadini migliore calciatrice italiana 2013" . 28 January 2014. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ a b Teo Lerro (16 December 2014). "Galà Aic: Conte miglior tecnico, Pirlo re dei calciatori" . Il Quotidiano Italiano. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Oscar del Calcio, dominio Juve. Buffon: "Donnarumma ha doti da grande" " [Serie A Oscars, Juve dominate. Buffon: "Donnarumma has the characteristics to be great"] (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. 14 December 2015. Retrieved 14 December 2015 .
^ Noemi Diamantini. "MELANIA GABBIADINI" (in Italian). Calcio Donna. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ Luca Cirillo (18 April 2013). "Gabbiadini, la sorella: "Mi ispiro a Pato ma anche ad un ex calciatore del Napoli" " (in Italian). Calcio Napoli 24. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Melania Gabbiadini" (in Italian). Verona Calcio Femminile. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ Gloria Callarelli (11 January 2015). "Melania Gabbiadini: "Verona bellissima, spero in un progetto con l'Hellas" " (in Italian). Verona Sera. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "ASD CF Bardolino Verona" . UEFA.com. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Italia Campionato Europeo Femminile Svezia 10 – 28 Luglio 2013" (PDF) (in Italian). Italian Football Federation . p. 12. Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ Turner, Georgina (26 May 2005). "Italy – An Azzurre masterclass" . The Guardian . Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ "Melania Gabbiadini" . uefa.com . UEFA . Archived from the original on 8 December 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ "Cabrini finalises Italy's Women's EURO squad" . uefa.com . UEFA . 1 July 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ "L'Italia stende la Danimarca e "vede" i quarti" (in Italian). UEFA.com. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Europeo femminile: vince la Svezia, ma l'Italia è ai quarti" (in Italian). Sky Sport. 16 July 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ Sebastiano Vernazza (21 July 2013). "Europeo donne, Italia eliminata nei quarti. Vince 1–0 la Germania" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Presentata a Reggio Emilia la finale della UEFA Women's Champions League" (in Italian). FIGC.it. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2017 .
^ "First women receive 100-cap awards" . UEFA.com. 1 October 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2017 .
^ "Torneo in Brasile dal 7 dicembre. Bottaro: "Ringrazio le società per la collaborazione" " (in Italian). FIGC.it. 16 November 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2017 .
^ "Presentata a Reggio Emilia la finale della UEFA Women's Champions League" . figc.it (in Italian). 16 February 2016. Archived from the original on 25 February 2016.
^ Vernazza, Sebastiano (1 July 2012). "Frasi, smile e corone: gli azzurri campioni di tatuaggi Tutti marchi garantiti" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport . Retrieved 8 December 2013 .
^ "Europe's footballing brothers and sisters" . UEFA . 9 February 2017.
^ Wim Kieft look-a-like: "Heeft ze ook een loopneus!?" - VOETBAL INSIDE , retrieved 2022-07-14
^ a b "Melania Gabbiadini: Soccerway Profile" . Soccerway. Retrieved 1 September 2015 .
^ "Italian football Hall of Fame to induct ten new stars" . 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016 .
^ "Nazionale, a Buffon il 'Pallone azzurro' " (in Italian). La Repubblica. 1 January 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2017 .
External links
Italian players Coaches Italian veterans Italian referees Italian directors Foreign players Italian female players Posthumous honours – Players Posthumous honours – Coaches Posthumous honours – Directors Posthumous honours – Referees Davide Astori Fair Play Award Special Award