Italian press suggest the true cost of Giovanni Leoni's knee injury is even bigger than first realised

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The Italian had a rather impressive game as he was arguably the best centre-back out of him and Joe Gomez, with the Englishman having a game he’ll likely want to forget.

Although the extent of Leoni’s injury was unknown, Fabrizio Romano has now reported that the 18-year-old has torn his ACL.

Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar Via Getty Images

This means Leoni will likely be out until the end of the season, with his chances of making Italy’s World Cup squad now in tatters.

Although Leoni was called up to Italy’s national squad last time around, Gennaro Gattuso never gave him a minute on the pitch.

This meant that most fans were left confused by his inclusion in the squad, especially when he’s trying to figure out who deserves a call-up to Italy’s World Cup squad at the end of the season.

The World Cup will be the main thing on most players’ minds this term, with players such as Marc Guehi unlikely to move midway through a season due to the amount of playing time he’ll get with the Eagles.

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In Leoni’s case, however, the injury couldn’t have come at a worse time, as, according to Corriere dello Sport, Gattuso was about to ‘launch’ the former Parma man into his national team.

“Leoni’s injury is also very bad news for the national team,” they wrote.

“After the last calls, Gattuso was in fact ready to launch him.”

Last season was Leoni’s breakout campaign.