Football
Ben Gladwell, Italy correspondent 10y

Rossi set to miss season opener

Giuseppe Rossi is set to miss Fiorentina's first game of the season at Roma on Aug. 30 after being told to rest for "at least a week" due to concerns about his knee.

The Italy international missed the cut for the World Cup squad due to fears the national team coach Cesare Prandelli had over his fitness. Rossi missed almost the whole of last season due to a knee ligament injury -- the second in his career -- and was not selected for the final 23.

On Monday, the forward, who was left out of Fiorentina's squad for the 2-1 friendly win over Real Madrid in Warsaw at the weekend due to a thigh strain, underwent tests on that particular injury. While no serious damage was discovered by a scan, a further examination of the knee he injured last season produced more worrying results.

"Diagnosis tests excluded any muscular tears to the thigh flexors, however the checks did reveal signs of an overburdening of the right knee," read a statement on the Serie A club's website. "The player will be ordered to rest and receive treatment for at least seven days, at the end of which he will undergo further checks."

As a result, the 27-year-old is unlikely to be fit for the Viola's opening Serie A fixture in just over 10 days' time while he may also fall out of consideration for the first Italy squad under new coach Antonio Conte. The Azzurri face Netherlands in Bari on Sept. 4 before travelling to Norway for a Euro 2016 qualifier five days later.

Rossi's career has been blighted by injury, indeed his first serious knee injury in 2011 saw him miss almost two full years. He has been restricted to only 25 appearances for Fiorentina since joining them 18 months ago from Villarreal.

In a recent interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Rossi said he was hoping to put all his injury woes behind him this season, saying he does not need to be wrapped in cotton wool.

"I'm not made of crystal, but I know that to be 100 percent, I have to do specific work and train more than the others," he said.

"But I don't want to feel restricted in any way. I've had three serious injuries in the space of just a few years so it's only logical that there's something different about the work I have to do, but this does not mean I cannot cope with 90 minutes or more than one game a week, otherwise there would be no point doing all I've done, would there?"

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