Giuseppe Rossi

Giuseppe Rossi

Rossi in 2011
Personal information
Full nameGiuseppe Rossi[1]
Date of birth1 February 1987[1]
Place of birthTeaneck, New Jersey, United States
Height1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) [2]
Playing positionForward
Club information
Current team
Fiorentina
Number22
Youth career
1996–1999Clifton Stallions
2000–2004Parma
2004Manchester United
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2004–2007Manchester United5(1)
2006→ Newcastle United (loan)11(0)
2007→ Parma (loan)19(9)
2007–2013Villarreal136(54)
2013–Fiorentina22(16)
National team‡
2003Italy U165(3)
2003–2004Italy U1714(6)
2004–2005Italy U183(0)
2006–2008Italy U2116(5)
2008Italy Olympic team6(6)
2008–Italy30(7)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18 May 2014.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 31 May 2014

Giuseppe Rossi (born 1 February 1987) is an American-born Italian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Fiorentina and the Italian national team.

Born in Teaneck, New Jersey, he began his career with the Clifton Stallions in nearby Clifton, New Jersey, but joined the youth team of Italian club Parma at the age of 12. When he was 17, he was signed by English club Manchester United, but he was unable to break into the first team; after loan spells with Newcastle United and back at Parma, he signed for Spanish club Villarreal in 2007. After five-and-a-half years with Villarreal, he returned to Italy, signing for Fiorentina in January 2013.

Due to his prolific performances in the Spanish La Liga, Rossi earned the nickname Pepito Rossi, a reference to his namesake Paolo Rossi, who was nicknamed Pablito following his goalscoring performances in Italy's victorious 1982 FIFA World Cup campaign in Spain.[3][4]

After his father's death in 2010, Rossi began to wear the number 49, which was the year of his father's birth; in 2014, he switched back to the number 22 jersey.[5]

Early life

Rossi is an Italian American, born to Italian immigrant parents in Teaneck, New Jersey; his father, Fernando Rossi, coached soccer and taught Italian and Spanish at Clifton High School. His mother, Cleonilde Rossi, was also a language teacher at Clifton.[6] At age 12,[7] he moved to Parma, Italy, with his father to begin his youth career at Parma.

Club career

Early career

Rossi at Manchester United Reserves in 2007

When offered a spot on the youth team of Parma, Rossi (then 12) and his father moved to Italy until Manchester United bought his contract when he was 17.[8] His first-team debut came on November 20, 2004, at home to Crystal Palace in the fifth round of the League Cup, as an 84th-minute substitute for David Bellion.[9]

For his Premier League debut on October 15, 2005, he came on in the 78th minute for Ruud van Nistelrooy and nine minutes later scored the last goal in a 3–1 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.[10] On January 18, 2006, in an FA Cup third-round replay, he started and scored twice as United beat non-league Burton Albion 5–0.[11] Although Rossi did not play in the League Cup final against Wigan Athletic, Nemanja Vidić (who made a seven-minute cameo at the end of the game) gave Rossi his medal in recognition of Rossi's contribution to the team's success in the earlier rounds.[12]

At the start of the 2006–07 season, Rossi moved to Newcastle United on loan until January 1, 2007, where he was expected to gain some first team experience. He made his home debut on September 24, 2006.[13] Rossi scored his only Newcastle goal in his first start on October 25, 2006, against Portsmouth in a League Cup third round tie at St James' Park.[14]

For the second half of the season, he was again loaned out, this time to his former club, Parma.[15] Scoring nine goals in 19 league appearances,[16] he helped the club escape the threat of relegation.

Villarreal

Rossi played for Villarreal for five-and-a-half years after joining from Manchester United in 2007.

On July 31, 2007, Manchester United confirmed that Rossi had been sold to Spanish club Villarreal for an undisclosed fee, reportedly around £6.6 million (€10 million).[17][18] He scored his first goal for Villarreal on his debut against Valencia on August 26, 2007.[19]

In his second season with Villarreal, Rossi had scored 12 goals in 30 league appearances, along with three goals in eight Champions League appearances.[20] In January 2011, he signed a contract extension with Villarreal until 2016.[21] The 2010–11 season proved to be his breakthrough season, as he scored 32 goals in 56 appearances in all competitions, helping the club to a fourth-place finish in La Liga, scoring 18 goals, which qualified them for the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League, also helping Villarreal to the semi-finals of the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League that season, scoring 11 goals, and the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey. An anterior cruciate ligament injury on Rossi's right knee that he picked up in the 3–0 loss against Real Madrid on October 26, 2011 caused Rossi to be out for six months.[22] Rossi reinjured his anterior cruciate ligament of right knee in training on April 13, 2012, and was out for a further 10 months.[23]

Fiorentina

On 4 January 2013, Fiorentina came to an agreement with Villarreal for the transfer of Rossi for a fee of approximately €11.8 million.[24] On 7 January, Fiorentina held a press conference unveiling Rossi, where it was revealed the player had signed a four-year contract containing a €35 million release clause.[25]

On 21 May, the final day of the 2012–13 Serie A season, Rossi made his debut for Fiorentina as a substitute in a 5–1 win over Pescara.[26]

On 26 August, Rossi scored his first goal in 23 months in Fiorentina's opening match of the 2013–14 Serie A season – a 2–1 defeat of Catania.[27] On 20 October, Rossi inspired Fiorentina to a 4–2 come from behind win over Juventus, netting a 14-minute hat-trick that condemned Juve to their first defeat in Florence for 15 years.[28]

On 5 January 2014, Rossi was substituted in Fiorentina's match against Livorno as he suffered a second-degree sprain of his medial collateral ligament in his right knee.[29] Up to this point he had been the leading goal scorer in Serie A with 14 goals in 18 league appearances.[7]

Rossi returned from injury as a 69th-minute substitute in Fiorentina's 3–1 Coppa Italia final loss to Napoli on 3 May.[30] On 6 May, he scored on his Serie A comeback – a 4–3 defeat to Sassuolo.[31]

On 14 August 2014, Rossi injured his medial meniscus of right knee in training. On 5 September 2014 Fiorentina confirmed Rossi will be out for 4–5 months [32]

International career

Rossi represented Italy at almost every youth level from under-16 to under-21. In 2006, he was invited to a pre-World Cup training camp with the United States national team by then-coach Bruce Arena but declined, stating his desire to play for Italy. He was called up for the 2007 Euro U-21 by head coach Pierluigi Casiraghi. He scored four goals at the 2008 Summer Olympics, making him the top scorer for the tournament, despite only reaching the quarter-final.

Italian national football team manager Marcello Lippi has stated that had Rossi been fit, he would have received a call-up for the 2010 World Cup qualifiers in September 2008.[33] Rossi was called up to the Italy squad in October 2008, making his debut for the national team as a second-half substitute against Bulgaria on October 11. Rossi scored his first goal for the Italian national team on 6 June 2009, in a friendly against Northern Ireland, at Pisa's Arena Garibaldi.[34] He also scored two goals against the United States in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa on 15 June 2009.[35]

Rossi was in Lippi's provisional 28-man 2010 FIFA World Cup squad announced in May,[36] but failed to make the cut for final 23-man squad.[37]

On 17 November 2010, for his 18th cap for Italy, Rossi was picked by Italian manager Cesare Prandelli to wear the captain's armband for the first time ahead of the friendly against Romania.[38]

After a two-year absence from the national team due to injury, Rossi appeared in a 2014 World Cup qualifying match on 15 October 2013, as Italy drew 2-2 against Armenia at home.[39] On 13 May 2014, Rossi was named in Italy's provisional 30-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup,[40] however Prandelli informed Rossi that he would not be in the final 23-man squad.[41] On 1 June, it was announced that Rossi had not made the final 23-man World Cup squad.[42]

Style of play

A left-footed striker, Rossi is known for his overall attacking and creative style of play. He has often been compared to Del Piero due to his acceleration, agility, strong technical skills, range of passing, dribbling talents, and his ability to pick out a pass. He is known for his ability to score goals and link-up play; he often drops deep and is involved in the buildup of plays. Rossi is able to play in a variety of attacking positions, including on the wings, as a support striker, lone-striker and in an attacking midfield role.[43][44][45][46][47]

Club statistics

Accurate as of 18 May 2014.[48][49]
Club Season League Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Manchester United 2004–05 000020000020
2005–06 51223120–124
Total 5122512000144
Newcastle United (loan) 2006–07 1100021––131
Parma (loan) 2006–07 19900–10–209
Villarreal 2007–08 271152–50–3713
2008–09 301210–83–3915
2009–10 341042–85–4617
2010–11 361853–1511–5632
2011–12 9300–52–145
Total 13654157–4121–19282
Fiorentina 2012–13 1000–––10
2013–14 211610–21–2417
2014–15 0000–00–00
Total 221610–21–2517
Total 1938018972462200264113

Honours

Individual

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2007). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2007–08. Mainstream Publishing. p. 355. ISBN 978-1-84596-246-3.
  2. ↑ ESPN
  3. ↑ Giovanni Capuano (8 May 2014). "Rossi, Mondiale a rischio. Ma Prandelli si ricordi di Pablito...". http://www.panorama.it'' (in Italian). Panorama. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  4. ↑ "Da Pablito a Pepito stesso fiuto del gol ma lui è più potente". Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  5. ↑ Matteo Dovellini (14 July 2014). "Per Rossi la maglia numero 22, con dedica al padre". http://firenze.repubblica.it/'' (in Italian). La Repubblica. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  6. ↑ Longman, Jeré (June 9, 2009). "Young Soccer Star Is Close to Completing His Italian Dream". The New York Times. Retrieved January 31, 2011.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Wahl, Grant (February 11, 2014). "SI Now: Giuseppe Rossi". SI Now. Retrieved February 22, 2014.
  8. ↑ Canales, Andrea (November 30, 2005). "My Country, 'Tis of Thee". ESPNsoccernet. Retrieved July 9, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Man Utd 2-0 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). November 10, 2004. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Sunderland 1-3 Man Utd". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). October 15, 2005. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  11. ↑ "Man Utd 5-0 Burton Albion". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). January 18, 2006. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  12. ↑ Thompson, Gemma (21 January 2014). "Vida's Cup revelation". ManUtd.com (Manchester United). Retrieved 21 January 2014.
  13. ↑ Hughes, Ian (September 20, 2006). "Liverpool 2-0 Newcastle". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  14. ↑ "Newcastle 3-0 Portsmouth". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). October 25, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  15. ↑ "Man Utd agree Parma loan deal for Rossi". ESPN. January 18, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  16. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi". ESPN. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  17. ↑ Hibbs, Ben (July 7, 2007). "Rossi to join Villarreal". Manchester United. Retrieved August 1, 2007.
  18. ↑ "El Villarreal ficha al delantero Giuseppe Rossi" (in Spanish). Villarreal CF. July 31, 2007. Retrieved August 1, 2007.
  19. ↑ "Barcelona held by ten-man Racing". UEFA. August 26, 2007. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  20. ↑ Giuseppe Rossi Football Stats
  21. ↑ MacDonald, Paul (January 25, 2011). "Official: Villarreal Striker Giuseppe Rossi Signs Contract Extension Until 2016. However Rossi has been subject to a move to Tottenham Hotspur, and a fee has been agreed on deadline day.". goal.com. Retrieved January 25, 2011.
  22. ↑ "Rossi out for six months". ESPN. October 27, 2011.
  23. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi reinjures knee". ESPN. April 13, 2012.
  24. ↑ Barlotti, Iacopo. BILANCIO ACF, Ecco il costo di Gomez e Rossi Firenze Viola. Retrieved 3 August 2014
  25. ↑ Digby, Adam Rossi delighted with Viola switch ESPN FC. Retrieved January 9, 2013
  26. ↑ "Rossi Finally Back on the Field". New York Times. May 22, 2013.
  27. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi scores first goal in 23 months as Fiorentina wins Serie A opener (Video)". NBC. August 27, 2013.
  28. ↑ "Fiorentina 4-2 Juventus". ESPNFC. October 20, 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
  29. ↑ "Fiorentina confirm Rossi injury". football-italia. 6 January 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  30. ↑ "Napoli defeat Fiorentina after fan is shot to win their fifth Coppa Italia". The Guardian. 4 May 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  31. ↑ "Pushing for Italy: Giuseppe Rossi scores in second game back from injury". Sports Illustrated. 6 May 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  32. ↑ "Rossi out for four-five months". Football Italia. 5 September 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  33. ↑ Gozzini, Alessandra (September 2, 2008). "Lippi: "Un'altra Berlino? Dipende anche da Cipro"". Gozzini (in Italian) (Gazzetta.it). Retrieved August 2, 2007.
  34. ↑ "Italy 3-0 Northern Ireland". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). June 6, 2009. Retrieved June 7, 2009.
  35. ↑ Ashenden, Mark (June 15, 2009). "USA 1-3 Italy". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved June 17, 2009.
  36. ↑ "Grosso misses out for Italy". Sky Sports. May 18, 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  37. ↑ "Pronta la squadra azzurra: ecco la lista dei 23 per il Mondiale". FIGC (in Italian). June 1, 2010. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
  38. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi to captain Italy". November 17, 2010.
  39. ↑ "Nazionale, torna Giuseppe Rossi. Per Danimarca e Armenia anche Balzaretti e Balotelli". http://www.repubblica.it/'' (in Italian). La Repubblica. 6 October 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  40. ↑ "World Cup 2014: Striker Giuseppe Rossi in Italy's provisional squad". BBC. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  41. ↑ Matar, Daniella (June 3, 2014). "Prandelli: Rossi knew he wasn't in Italy WC squad". Yahoo Sport. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Italy World Cup squad: Giuseppe Rossi ‘saddened and disappointed’ by snub". The Guardian. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  43. ↑ http://www.giusepperossi.azplayers.com/biography.html
  44. ↑ Villarreal's Giuseppe Rossi could be the heir to Juventus' Alessandro Del Piero - agent - Goal.com
  45. ↑ Giuseppe Rossi
  46. ↑ Villarreal striker Giuseppe Rossi to decide future next week as Barcelona transfer talk intensifies - Goal.com
  47. ↑ Best forward left - why Giuseppe Rossi is the right man for Barcelona - Goal.com
  48. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi". ESPN FC.
  49. ↑ "Giuseppe Rossi". UEFA.
  50. ↑ Bostock, Adam (May 4, 2010). "Award joy for Keane". ManUtd.com (Manchester United). Retrieved July 11, 2011.
  51. ↑ Bostock, Adam (May 4, 2010). "De Laet's delight". ManUtd.com (Manchester United). Retrieved July 11, 2011.
  52. ↑ "Argentina's Midas touch". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
  53. ↑ "Pallone d'argento a Giuseppe Rossi durante Fiorentina vs Torino". Retrieved 21 January 2015.

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