Giuseppe Rossi: A talented Italian who stuttered into the footballing wilderness

Date: 29th August 2017 at 3:23pm
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Speak of Italian-Americans and images of the New York neighborhood of Little Italy and Hollywood blockbusters such as ‘The Godfather’ spring to mind. Despite their clear imprint on American society, the Italians weren’t able to impart their religious following of football on people of the United States.

Soccer, as it is known, remains an under-appreciated sport in the United States in comparison to baseball and basketball, but the past decade has certainly seen gradual improvement.

The establishment of a competitive league saw the arrival of star names, new franchises and the nurturing of homegrown talents. One such talent that eluded the grasp of American scouts and selectors was New Jersey born Giuseppe Rossi, who elected to represent Italy despite US advances in 2006; his story is a sad one.

Leaving his country of birth aged 12, Rossi embarked on a journey that would take him to the pinnacle of professional football.

Impressing during his five years spent with Parma, a 17 year-old Rossi found himself playing for Manchester United in the Premier League. After an uneventful loan spell with Newcastle United, the promising young striker returned to Parma on loan and helped the club escape relegation with nine goals in 19 appearances.

The next chapter in his story saw him leave England for Spain, joining Villarreal for €10 million in 2007. The move would cement his status as a top professional and exceptional talent, scoring 82 goals in 192 appearances for the Yellow Submarine in a six-year stay. However, toward the end of his time at Villarreal, his story would be changed forever.

In 2011 the Italian sustained an injury during a 3-0 defeat to Real Madrid, with tests revealing he’d sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee. Rossi would miss six months of action, but tragically sustained further damage to the same knee having returned to training in 2012.

Over a year on the sidelines followed, but crucially for Rossi, his reputation as an intelligent, technically gifted forward was set in concrete. As a result, it wasn’t long after that clubs from across Europe were making attempts to prise him away from Villarreal, who by this stage had been relegated to the Segunda Division. He finished his final season at Villarreal with 32 goals in 56 appearances across all competitions.

The next chapter in his story took him to Florence in what was considered a match made in heaven. Fiorentina were showcasing jaw-dropping attacking football at the Stadio Artemio Franchi under Vincenzo Montella, finishing the 2012-13 season in a staggering fourth position.

Rossi was the only addition to a vibrant La Viola squad in their winter transfer window, and a reunion with ex-Villarreal teammates Borja Valero and Gonzalo Rodriguez made the transition all the more easy for him. It had been almost a decade since the Italian left the peninsula for a shot at stardom with Manchester United, but the return to Italy seemed perfectly timed. With a number of years before he reached the peak of his playing career at 28 and the chance to earn a recall to the national side, the cards were well and truly stacked in Rossi’s favour.

However, his continued injury concerns were present even before he’d pulled on the famous purple jersey. Rossi would only make his debut for Fiorentina in a substitutes appearances at the very end of the Serie A season, playing 26 minutes in a 5-1 win over Pescara. Nevertheless, with the new season dawning, Rossi demonstrated to fans what they’d been missing. In a run of matches which lasted 18 games, the Italian netted 14 goals including a 14 minute hat-trick against fierce rivals Juventus in front of the Fiorentina faithful.

His excellence was there for all to see, but tragedy struck once again as his fantastic scoring form was curtailed by yet another ligament injury. Leaving many to wonder what could have been had he remained fit, Rossi returned for the final three games, scoring twice to make it 16 and finish as the club’s top scorer for the season.

While it was clear Rossi was worth the money Fiorentina had spent, it started to become increasingly obvious that the forward needed to be treated with great care. Sadly for Rossi, the opportunity to build on the success of his first full season in Florence never came, as yet further injury concerns sidelined him for the entirety of the 2014-15 season.

The following season saw a change in personnel at the Artemio Franchi, with Montella being replaced by Paulo Sousa. Rossi saw his involvement limited in an ever-changing Fiorentina side, and with just 11 Serie A appearances and no goals, Rossi decided he needed to change the script with a change of scenery. In an almost desperate attempt to salvage his playing career at the top level, Rossi returned to Spain with Levante for the remainder of the 2015-16 season.

His six goals in 17 appearances, much of which were played at high intensity and often for the full match, gave Rossi hope of restarting his stuttering career. A decision was made in the build up to the 2016-17 season that Rossi be given the opportunity of regular football elsewhere, prompting a loan move to Spanish side Celta Vigo.

The Galician outfit were all too happy to accept the 29 year-old, as they needed an adequate replacement for the outgoing Nolito. However, despite managing to remain fit for the majority of the campaign, Rossi could only manage four league goals for Celta; three of which came in the form of a hat-trick against Las Palmas. Having reached 18 LaLiga matches for the season, his nemesis made yet another appearance. Ligament damage in his left knee condemned him to the treatment table once again.

This represents the latest chapter in what has truly been a sad story for the New Jersey native, yet his story is far from over.

At 30-years old the Italian can still be a decisive player for any side, and while he recovers from his most recent injury, his status as a free agent will surely be a lure for any number of football clubs across the globe.

 

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