Knee injury puts Chiesa's season at risk, out of World Cup playoffs

Milan (AFP) – Federico Chiesa’s season is almost certainly over after Juventus announced on Monday the Italy forward suffered a left knee ligament injury during his team’s thrilling win over Roma.

Chiesa limped off the Stadio Olimpico pitch in the first half of Sunday’s match, won 4-3 by Juve, and the club said in a statement the 24-year-old would require surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament.

Juve did not say for how long Chiesa would be out but ACL injuries require months of recovery time, and Italian media have pronounced his season over.

That means he will also miss Italy’s bid to qualify for the 2022 World Cup via the playoffs, which begins against North Macedonia in late March.

His absence will be a big blow to Italy coach Roberto Mancini as he was one of the stars of the Azzurri’s triumph at Euro 2020 last summer.

Chiesa, who had just returned to action after weeks on the sidelines with a muscle injury, has scored four times for Juve this season in all competitions.