Giuseppe Rossi

Giuseppe Rossi (born 1 February 1987, in Teaneck, New Jersey, New Jersey) is an Italian-American football (soccer) player. He currently plays for the Spain La Liga side Villarreal CF. He plays in the second striker position. Rossi was raised in Clifton, New Jersey, New Jersey, in the USA. His parents were Italian immigrants, his father being a coach. He has a younger sister named Tina and he is childhood friends with Danny Szetela. His mother and sister live in the USA.

Club career

Early career

When offered a spot on the youth team of Parma F.C., Rossi and his family moved to Italy until Manchester United F.C. bought him when he was 17. There, he enjoyed prolific form in the Youth and Reserve teams but had limited chances with the senior side, although he always impressed whenever he made an appearance in cup games.

At the start of the 2006-07 in English football, Rossi moved to Newcastle United F.C. on loan until January 1 2007, where he was expected to gain some first team experience. He made his home debut on September 24 2006 impressing all, showing his quick feet with a barrage of snap shots. Rossi scored his one and only Newcastle goal on his first start on October 25 2006 against Portsmouth F.C] in a Carling Cup 3rd Round tie at St. James' Park.

For the second half of the season he was again loaned out, this time to his former club, Parma, in a far more successful move. Scoring 9 goals in 19 league appearances, he helped the club escape the threat of relegation and proved many of his qualities. Because of this, and his desire to play regularly, Rossi was linked to a host of clubs in Italy and Europe.

Villarreal

On July 31 2007 Manchester United confirmed Rossi had been sold to Spanish club Villarreal CF for an undisclosed fee, reportedly around £6 million. However, a clause was added to Rossi's Villarreal contract that allows Manchester United to repurchase him at a later date. He scored his debut goal for Villarreal CF in the first leg of La Liga on August 26 2007.

International career

Rossi is a dual citizen of both the United States of America and Italy.

In 2006, Rossi was invited to a pre-World Cup training camp with the United States men's national soccer team by then-coach Bruce Arena but declined, stating his desire to play for Italy national football team. He has represented the Azzurri at almost every young level from U-16 to U-21.