Bardolino await Brøndby test

Despite having an eleventh-month unbeaten run in Italy ended by Torres Terra Sarda on the eve of the first leg of their UEFA Women's Cup quarter-final against Brøndby IF, ASD CF Bardolino Verona striker Patrizia Panico insists her team "are in form and ready for Europe".

Manieri injury
Bardolino are now three points behind Torres in Serie A having gone into that fixture without Raffaella Manieri after the midfielder suffered knee ligament damage in a previous victory against Atalanta BC. There was some cheer for the Italian champions, though, as Roberta Stefanelli was passed fit to return to her defensive position after injury against the Danish challengers.

'Difficult tie'
Panico refuted suggestions that Bardonlino had one eye on Europe when they went down to Torres, an unexpected loss for a team who had scored 23 goals and conceded none in winning their other five league outings this term. "We were not thinking about Brøndby," she said. "We just missed a few good opportunities to score and were punished on the counterattack. We are in good form and are ready for the European game. It will be a difficult tie but we have already proved in the group stage what we can do."

In-form Panico
Panico, the scorer of eight goals in six Serie A games, will be supported in attack by Melania Gabbiadini and Valentina Boni, the same trio who are leading the Italy line in qualifying for the 2009 UEFA European Women's Championship. Brøndby also boast a squad brimming with internationals; ten were recently involved in the first leg of the play-off for the Olympic Games against Sweden, a 4-2 home defeat.

Arsenal warning
Far from being a burden, midfielder Cathrine Paaske Sørensen is relishing major matches coming thick and fast. "We've been missing these type of matches since the [FIFA] Women's World Cup," she told uefa.com. "The fact that Bardolino drew 3-3 against Arsenal [LFC, the holders, in the second qualifying round] obviously means we have to respect them. But I still think we have a good chance, and see it as an advantage to be playing the second leg at home."

Group toppers
Brøndby know all about Arsenal having fallen 5-2 on aggregate to the eventual winners in the semi-finals last season. They are determined to improve on that showing this time and can take confidence from their performances in the second qualifying round when they finished first in a group featuring hosts Olympique Lyonnais, Kolbotn IL of Norway and AC Sparta Praha.