Azzurri suffer Cannavaro loss
03 Jun 2008 - 08:09:39
Italy's Euro 2008 campaign has been rocked by the news that captain Fabio Cannavaro will miss the tournament after suffering a serious ankle injury during training.
The 34-year-old Real Madrid centre-back was injured in a collision with team-mate Giorgio Chiellini and tests on the problem later confirmed the bad news for the Azzurri.
A statement form the Italian Football Federation read: "The news we feared was confirmed late on Monday evening. Fabio Cannavaro will say goodbye to our European adventure before it has even begun.
"The captain has suffered torn ligaments, which happened the moment his foot made contact with the ground. His ankle twisted awkwardly."
Cannavaro has been a stalwart for Italy for a number of years, winning 116 caps to date, while he captained the Azzurri to World Cup glory in Germany in the summer of 2006.
Fiorentina defender Alessandro Gamberini has been called up in place of the stricken Cannavaro.