Italy sweating on fitness of talismanic captain Giorgio Chiellini

Italy sweating on fitness of talismanic captain Giorgio Chiellini after 36-year-old was forced off with thigh injury during win over Switzerland

  • Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini felt a muscle problem and had to come off
  • He immediately signalled to the sideline in potentially huge blow for Italy 
  • Veteran was replaced by Francesco Acerbi and captain will hope it is not serious
  • Find out the latest Euro 2020 news including fixtures, live action and results here

Italy suffered a potentially huge blow with an injury to captain Giorgio Chiellini forcing the talismanic captain off against Switzerland. 

The centre-back, 36, thought he had scored a rare goal early in the game but it was ruled out after VAR judged him to have handled the ball before slotting home. 

And minutes later, around a quarter of an hour into the game, his race was run. Chiellini signalled to the sidelines and was replaced by Francesco Acerbi. 

Giorgio Chiellini trudged off the pitch early in the game with an injury to his thigh 

The defender thought he had scored only to have it ruled out and then came off injured 

He is understood to have suffered a flexor problem in his left thigh and Roberto Mancini will now be sweating on his fitness for the rest of Euro 2020. 

Italy ran out 3-0 winners, guaranteeing a place in the last 16 but it remains to be seen whether Chiellini will play any further part. 

In the ITV studio, Patrick Vieira reflected: ‘Of course it is a big worry, at 36 coming off after 15 minutes is not good for his tournament.’

The Azzurri will hope their captain simply felt a twinge and did not want to take any unnecessary risks. 

The Juventus stalwart had looked at his miserly best in the opening win over Turkey and would be a real miss for Mancini if he is out for the long term. 

That said, he missed the majority of Italy’s undefeated run while recovering from an ACL injury and Acerbi deputised impressively.  

Italy have been among the most talked about teams in the Euros so far and became the first team through to the knockout stages on Wednesday night. 


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