Giuseppe Rossi's injury blow leaves Italy short for Euro 2012 and spells disaster for Villarreal

Earlier this week, Panini made headlines in Italy by revealing that neither Antonio Cassano nor Giuseppe Rossi would feature in their Euro 2012 sticker album. Cassano, of course, still has every chance of forcing his way back into the Azzurri squad for Poland and Ukraine but we now know that Rossi’s dream has died – and in particularly devastating fashion.

The Villarreal forward’s place in Cesare Prandelli’s panel had been in jeopardy from the moment he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during the Liga defeat at the hands of Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu last October, but Rossi was growing increasingly optimistic of proving his fitness before the end of the season.

Then, on Friday morning, disaster struck. Rossi collapsed in training, and his club confirmed that the worst had happened - the same ACL that had sidelined him initially had ruptured once more.

In a wider context, the agonising news gives Prandelli a real selection headache for Euro 2012; Rossi had, after all, been one of Italy’s outstanding players during their qualifying campaign, having formed a terrific partnership with Cassano. The AC Milan forward's own health issues have been well-documented, and he now has six games to get back into the reckoning as he recovers from an emergency heart procedure last November.

So how will this setback affect Prandelli’s plans? Well, Parma’s Sebastian Giovinco is likely to travel and Cassano will almost certainly be included if he manages a return to action before the season's end. But aside from those two, there isn't another forward whose form can fully justify a place in the squad - highlighting the significance of Rossi's exclusion.