Haley Bugeja carries Inter into the new Serie A season with a milestone already behind her and a larger target in view. The Malta forward scored the club’s first-ever Women’s Champions League goal, but her attention is already turning to Sunday’s opening league match against Fiorentina at the Arena Civica, where Inter want to make their home ground a difficult destination for every visitor.
Key takeaways
- Bugeja’s Champions League strike was a historic first for Inter and strengthened the squad’s belief.
- Inter begin their Serie A campaign at home to Fiorentina on Sunday at the Arena Civica.
- The 23-year-old believes the team has become more mature during her four years at the club.
- She says the new coaching staff have given Inter clearer principles in and out of possession.
- Inter recognise Roma and Juventus as major rivals, but Bugeja insists the focus must remain internal.
- The forward says winning the league is an ambitious but genuine objective for a side she feels can achieve important things.
A landmark goal, then the work begins again
Bugeja described Inter’s European breakthrough as one of those matches that will remain with the group for a long time. There had been considerable expectation around the team, she said, but Inter had managed to exceed it. The result, in her view, has increased the players’ awareness of what they can do, although she was clear that the occasion must not become a stopping point.
For the forward herself, the goal was the fulfilment of a childhood ambition. Yet she feels she may not fully grasp what it represented until the season has ended, because she expects further opportunities and bigger landmarks to come.
Her celebration was modest and personal. Back at her apartment, Bugeja danced with her dog before calling her family. Friends from Malta have since joined her in Italy, and she said she was grateful not only for the goal but also for the affection that followed it.
The coach’s reaction also stayed with her. Bugeja has known him for only two or three months, but says she has already learned to understand his mood and thoughts from his expression. After the match, his words were limited to a simple “well done”, accompanied by a long embrace. She took satisfaction from that gesture, while adding with a smile that his standards remain high enough for him to expect perhaps two goals rather than one.
That demand reflects the atmosphere Bugeja sees within the squad: satisfaction is allowed, but there is always another level to pursue. “We can always give more on the pitch,” is the principle she takes into the league campaign.
Inter’s growing identity at the Arena Civica
Now in her fourth season with Inter, Bugeja believes the group has made a significant step forward from last year. Maturity has increased, she said, but more importantly the club have maintained a sense of steady development. She does not consider that progress sufficient on its own, with further work planned alongside the coach.
From the first day under the new staff, Inter have spent substantial time on tactical preparation. Bugeja said the team have developed a different way of playing that gives them clearer reference points both when defending without the ball and when attacking. Training sessions are demanding and lengthy, but she regards each one as an education.
The Arena Civica gives the opening fixture an added emotional weight. Bugeja calls it home, recalling victories, goals and post-match moments there with her family. Starting the season in such a setting matters to her, and she wants Inter to establish a home environment that opponents find uncomfortable.
Fiorentina are the first test, but Bugeja does not see any room for selective focus in Serie A. Every club enters the season with its own purpose, whether avoiding relegation or competing at the top, and she believes Inter must approach every fixture with the same seriousness and leave nothing held back.
Roma, the reigning champions, and Juventus, winners of the first trophy of the current campaign, naturally stand among the leading challengers. But Bugeja’s position is that Inter will be ready when those meetings arrive if they continue concentrating on their own standards.
Her journey in Italy began at Sassuolo, where her goals and left foot brought comparisons that labelled her the club’s “green-and-black Messi”. She feels she has developed considerably since then, both as a player and as a person, while Italian women’s football has grown with her. The league, she said, has given her confidence and taught her a great deal.
Bugeja still places high expectations on herself and on Inter. The feeling inside the club is that the squad can accomplish a great deal, and the objective is to win. A Scudetto would be a vast achievement, she acknowledged, but Inter believe they possess the quality to pursue it. The first task is to begin well against Fiorentina, then allow the season to reveal how far that conviction can carry them.
