Liverpool star's World Cup dream likely over but overlooked star could now get major chance to be at 2026 tournament
Giovanni Leoni’s dream debut ended in tears, but in a twist of fate his fellow Italian Federico Chiesa could benefit from his injury.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot took the decision to rest some of his senior players against Southampton hoping to progress to the next round whilst at the same time avoiding the risk of losing them through injury.
What he won’t have expected is to see one of his best players on the pitch go down in an innocuous challenge which has all but ended their season and ruined any plans that the Reds boss had to gradual introduce them into the starting XI. When Giovanni Leoni collided awkwardly with a Saints player it was immediately clear that he was in some distress which has now been confirmed as an anterior cruciate ligament knee injury.
Giovanni Leoni sees Italy World Cup dream disappear
The timeline is a long one, one that Virgil van Dijk went through and emerged as an even better player on the other side. At just 18-years old, Leoni at least has the advantage of youth and a body that will naturally heal quicker than most. This is, of course, scant consolation for a player who strolled through his debut at Anfield and looked very inch a future senior international for his country.
After looking more assured than Joe Gomez and being rated considerably higher on the Liverpool World player ratings, Leoni could have had a claim to being higher up the pecking order than the England international.
As seen with Rio Ngumoha, Slot isn’t concerned with how old a player is or what their reputation is, if they do the job that he asks them to do. Regular game time throughout the season and there is no reason why Gennaro Gattuso wouldn’t have considered taking Leoni to the World Cup, should the Azzuri qualify that is. He was part of their squad for the September international break.
Sadly, Leoni would have to recover ahead of the usual ACL surgery schedule and have no set-backs along the way just to get back playing before the end of the season, never mind into the sort of form needed to earn another call-up to the senior Italy squad. As a teenager, he has plenty of time on his side, not that this will make him feel any better just now.
How Federico Chiesa could benefit from Leoni’s injury
In a bizarre twist of fate, one player who could benefit from Leoni’s injury is Federico Chiesa who, due to a UEFA loophole, can been added to Liverpool’s Champions League squad instead of his young compatriot. A match-winning performance against Southampton was warmly received by Slot with the boss pointing out that the 27-year old’s hard work and attitude were every bit as impressive as what he did with the ball.
With Hugo Ekitike’s ‘stupid’ red card earning a suspension against Crystal Palace, Chiesa could earn another chance to impress after looking sharp in his appearances so far this campaign. A sharpness that he didn’t feel was there the last time Gattuso built his Italy squad.
“I know what I said to Chiesa, and Chiesa knows exactly what he said to me.," Gattuso said. "We were keen to call him up, but I saw a guy who wasn’t 100% sure. And when someone comes and has to face matches and official competitions, I want players who are fired up, ready. He told me, and made it clear to me, that he wasn’t up to it, because he had to improve certain things. That’s what we said.”
With more game time in the Premier League and Champions League, Chiesa will be hoping that he does enough to force his way back into Gattuso’s plans and earn a seat on the plane to the States. He bagged two assists against Southampton and will be eager to be involved in more goals in the coming months.