Still only 19 and navigating a move away from her home country, the Italian midfielder has fought for minutes this season amid strong competition in her position.

Sonia Bompastor has praised her strong mentality and determination to improve, explaining how the youngster continually asks for feedback on her performance. The head coach is confident more playing time will come, and Dragoni did her chances no harm by scoring her first competitive goal for Chelsea after being introduced as a second-half substitute against Charlton.

Yet it was matters off the pitch that were on the agenda when we sat down to talk to her, and it appears she's settling well in her new home.

'It’s been really nice since I moved here,' she smiles. 'It's already been three months. I came here, and I didn't know what to expect from my team-mates, to be honest. Of course, I knew Keira (Walsh) and Lucy (Bronze) from Barcelona, but I was really young then; I was a little kid. Now I'm a bit different as a person and a player.

'Everyone, since the first day, has helped me a lot to adapt better to the language, to the training, to a different kind of football. They are trying to make me feel as comfortable as they can, and I'm really enjoying my time here.

'I really enjoyed our tour to Australia and New Zealand; it was a nice first few weeks. Since then, I’ve been learning every day in training and trying to take in everything that I can from the other players. My English is improving, but I think I can get better.

'Of the three languages that I can speak (Italian, Spanish and English), English is the one that I speak the worst. But I'm happy, and I'm watching a lot of series in English to learn better.'

Back home in Italy, the spotlight has been on Dragoni's move to Chelsea. There, the women's game is still developing, so to see a young talent make the move to a side with multiple trophies and big ambitions has been a big deal.

Dragoni is not the kind of player to let such attention go to her head, and is instead content with the thought she might be making a difference as a role model to aspiring young players back home.

'I like to think about myself as a normal, almost 20-year-old girl,' she continues. 'I'm happy that little girls from Italy are thinking about me as a kind of inspiration, you know?

'I hope that some of these little girls can now dream of being at Chelsea if they really want to one day, and if they keep working hard, nothing is impossible. But I want to keep my feet on the ground. I'm that kind of person.'

The teenager is no stranger to living in big cities. Born in Milan, she earned a move to Barcelona in January 2023, before spending two seasons on loan at Roma in Italy's capital. And while she is now enjoying London, her patriotism shines through when asked to compare the UK capital with Rome.

'Rome is really nice. I think it's one of the best cities in the world, to be honest,' she says.

'Once you’ve lived there, it's really hard to compare Rome to other cities. As an Italian, I really love Rome, but I'm enjoying London so far as well, even if the weather is not the best!

'I'm maybe more of a country girl now. I think I’m a bit tired of too many people. We have nice parks and areas where we can walk near the training ground. That's the part I'm enjoying the most: being a bit calmer and having time on my own for a bit.'

Saturday's match with Everton at Stamford Bridge coincides with Dragoni's 20th birthday, and she shares her special day with Alyssa Thompson, who will turn 22 on 7 November. The Italian is looking forward to the celebrations for one particular reason.

She said: 'It’s good, because I don't want to have all the attention on me, so we can share it!'