AC Milan Women's Captain Valentina Giacinti is Really Awesome (And Other Random Observations)

As the headline says, Valentina Giacinti is just really awesome. And that was confirmed when she was given the award for the il Miglior Attaccante (Best Striker) at the Gran Gala del Calcio. She was also the only Milan player to make the Top XI and receive any awards, though (former player) Thaisa Moreno did win an award for her stunner against Juve, as that was voted the goal of the season, and Manuela Giugliano won the Best Player Award for her time at Milan.

(And watching them both win just makes me pretty wistful, and full of longing. But let’s not do that now.)

Still, the fact that Valentina stayed in the midst of all of the other departures and refuted the most tempting offers from abroad just to be our captain, is why we love her so much.

AIC

And you want to know who else is really awesome?

Valentina Bergamaschi. And why? Because she just is. And the fact that she goes out there and plays for us while still mourning the death of her grandmother just makes us love her even more. Thank you for everything that you’ve done for us Berga. We’re proud of you, and we will always be by your side no matter what.

Other things worth noting (some are awesome and some are well, not):

• Milan will play Inter again in December as both teams were drawn against each other in the Coppa Italia. This will be the second Derby Della Madonnina between the women this year. The game will take place on Wednesday, December 11th, and will be played at 14:30 PM CET (8:30 am EST / 5:30 am PST). All of the Coppa Italia matches for Serie A Femminile will kick off at the same time. The full table for the tournament can be found here.
• (It should be noted that Juve got the easier side of the bracket, for some odd reason. But as Mourinho himself said, ‘If I speak, I am in big trouble’, so I’m not going to say anymore.)
• (All kidding aside, I actually love you Juventini! Well ... most of the time.)
• The Women’s Champions League format will be expanded to have group stages, starting in the 2021/2022 season. What that means for Milan is that, assuming that Milan qualifies for the tournament, and that they (along with one other Italian team), makes it to the group stages, then they’ll have more of a chance to win games during that phase, and that will in turn, help improve the country’s coefficient. As it stands, Fiorentina is the only Italian team that has actually won a match in the competition, and Italy currently sits ninth in the club coefficient standings. Winning games in the group phases will help improve the country’s fortunes in the continental competition, and will eventually lead to the peninsula gaining more spots for their teams in the Champions League. You can read more about UEFA’S decision to change the format of the competition here.
• And finally, we can’t end this without mentioning just how awesome Francesca Vitale is. I mean, if it wasn’t amazing enough that she’s been the revelation of the season (and making us all marvel at the fact that this is actually her first time playing at right-back, due to how she’s been so remarkably good at it), we must also take the time out to praise her for being so kind, gracious and cordial, and extending those courtesies to others, even when they absolutely do not deserve it. Take, for example, the way Francesca responded to someone who was purposely being rude and trolling her on Twitter. The way she dealt with him in such a deft and simultaneously classy manner, just makes us love her even more.
• Francesca has not only won the Milanisti’s hearts and minds and has become our newest folk hero, but she’s also won over the opposition as well, with how she encourages her fans not to be insulting or rude in the spirit of fairness and civility. Francesca truly represents the best of Milan, and what makes us proud to be fans of this team, and to be a member of this community.

So there you have it. All the reasons why our ladies are awesome.

And if you want to see just how awesome these women are for yourselves, you can do so this Saturday when they take on Pink Bari at 14.30 PM CET (8:30 am EST / 5:30 am PST) you’ll be able to watch it online on TimVISION (Italy only), or on the official AC Milan app.

Now go on and show these ladies some love.