Daniele De Rossi

At 41 years old, Daniele De Rossi has this physical status:

Daniele De Rossi (born 24 July 1983) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Boca Juniors in the Argentine Primera División.

He is most known for his time playing with A.S.

Roma in Serie A. He is also a former Italy national team player. De Rossi made his professional debut with Roma during the 2001–02 season, and made his Serie A debut the following year.

With the club, he has won the Coppa Italia twice in 2007 and 2008, and the 2007 Supercoppa Italiana.

He was named Serie A Young Footballer of the Year in 2006, and the Serie A Italian Footballer of the Year in 2009.

De Rossi inherited the captaincy of Roma at the start of the 2017–18 season, following the retirement of Francesco Totti, during which he helped Roma to the Champions League semi-final for the first time in the Champions League era.

At the end of the 2018–19 season, he left Roma after 18 seasons with the team.

With 616 appearances for Roma in all competitions, he is the club's second-most capped player of all time, behind Totti.

He subsequently joined Argentine club Boca Juniors in the summer of 2019. De Rossi represented Italy at under-19, under-20, under-21 and senior levels, winning the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, and also represented Italy at the 2004 Olympics, winning a bronze medal.

From his senior international debut in 2004, until his retirement from the national team in 2017, he earned 117 caps, and is Italy's fourth-highest capped player of all time.

With 21 goals, he is the highest scoring midfielder for Italy post-World War II, and Italy's all-time second most prolific midfielder behind Adolfo Baloncieri.

He was part of the 2006 FIFA World Cup-winning squad and has also participated at UEFA Euro 2008, the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, the 2010 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012 (finishing in second place), the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup (finishing in third place), the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and UEFA Euro 2016.

De Rossi was named in the Euro 2012 Team of the Tournament for his performances.

Along with Mario Balotelli and Giuseppe Rossi, De Rossi is Italy's top scorer in the Confederations Cup, with two goals.

In 2009, the French sports magazine L'Équipe named De Rossi as the eighth-best midfielder in the world.

Personal life

De Rossi was born in Rome. He is the son of Alberto De Rossi, former Roma player and Roma's Primavera coach. He married Tamara Pisnoli on 18 May 2006, the mother of his daughter Gaia and ex-dancer of Mediaset, Sarabanda. The couple separated in early 2009. On 29 December 2006, according to a survey for the Italian edition of Men's Health, he was named Italian athlete of the year for 2007. De Rossi made his debut for Roma wearing the number 27 shirt, which he wore for two seasons. He then switched to the number 4, which he also wore during the 2006 World Cup. With the birth of his daughter on 16 June 2005, he changed to number 16 during the 2005–06 season, which one of his idols, Roy Keane, had also worn.

De Rossi was chosen as a Pringles spokesperson for Euro 2008, along with other top European football players such as Thierry Henry, Fernando Torres, Alexander Frei, Philipp Lahm and Michael Owen. He also appears in an Adidas "Dream Big" Commercial along with Steven Gerrard, Michael Ballack and David Beckham.

De Rossi is featured on the cover of the Italian edition of EA Sports' FIFA 09 video game. The picture on the cover is taken from De Rossi's emphatic goal-scoring celebration after scoring against Internazionale in the Supercoppa Italiana in 2008.

De Rossi has a tattoo on his leg of a mocked-up triangular "hazard" sign of a tackle being performed, reflecting his tough-tackling reputation.

On 26 December 2015, De Rossi married his partner, English-born Italian actress and model Sarah Felberbaum, in a private ceremony in the Maldives; the couple had been in a relationship since 2011, and have a daughter together, Olivia Rose, born on 14 February 2014, and a son together, Noah, born on 3 September 2016.

In March 2016, he put his World Cup winner's medal in the coffin of Pietro Lombardi, who had been the kitman of the Italian national team in the 2006 World Cup.

On 9 April 2021, it was announced that De Rossi had become hospitalised in Rome due to COVID-19 symptoms; by 13 April, he had been discharged, and by 26 April, he had recovered.

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Club career

De Rossi joined the Roma youth system in Ostia Mare, where he had competed as a striker in 2000. He made his first-team debut for Roma under new manager Fabio Capello on October 10, 2001 against Belgian side Anderlecht in the UEFA Champions League. He made three appearances in the Coppa Italia in his first season with the club. He made his Serie A debut against Como on January 25, 2003. He made his first Serie A appearance and career goal against Torino on May 10, 2003.

During the 2003–04 season, he established himself as a permanent member of the starting line-up in the holding midfield position and helped Roma to finish second-place in Serie A for the first time in the league, as well as consecutive Coppa Italia finals in 2005 and 2006. De Rossi wore the captain's armband for the first time in a UEFA Cup match against Middlesbrough due to his age, tenacity, and leadership on the pitch. De Rossi was praised by referee Mauro Bergonzi for fair play despite receiving numerous warnings and a reputation as a tough-tackling player during the 2005–06 season. In a Serie A match against Messina, Roma were trailing 1–0; De Rossi scored a goal from a header that had been deflected off of his hand; Bergonzi did not see the incident and allowed the equalizer to stand. However, De Rossi told the referee that he had pushed the ball in with his hand, resulting in the goal's suspension. Roma defeated 2–1, but De Rossi sustained an ankle injury during the match, ruled him out for two weeks. He was named the 2006 Serie A Young Footballer of the Year for his efforts at the end of the season.

De Rossi continued to be a pivotal player for the team in the 2006–07 season, scoring from 40 yards against Fiorentina on November 5, 2006, with Sébastien Frey in goal. Roma won the match 3–1, beating it for the first time of the night. In Roma's Champions League quarter-final loss to Manchester United in the 2006–07 season, he scored his lone Roma goal. Roma defeated Internazionale 6–2 in the 2007 Coppa Italia final, beating Internazionale on aggregate on May 9, 2007, while Roma advanced to claim the trophy on aggregate.

Roma defeated Interna 2-0 in Milan on 19 August 2007, under new manager Luciano Spalletti. De Rossi scored the decisive goal from a penalty in a 1–0 win. De Rossi was also a key role in the club's Coppa Italia triumph this season, defeating Inter twice in the final 2–1, although Inter finished second in Serie A behind Inter on May 24.

After a 2–2 draw with extra time, Roma was unable to defend the Supercoppa Italiana against Inter Inter the next season, losing the final 8–7 on penalties. De Rossi scored a goal in regulation time and converted one of Roma's penalties in the resulting shoot-out during the game. In a 4–2 loss to cross-city rivals Lazio, he scored his first goal in the Rome Derby on April 11, 2009. Roma finished the 2008-2009 Serie A season in sixth place, qualifying for the Coppa Italia quarterfinals. De Rossi was named Italian Footballer of the Year in 2009.

De Rossi made his 200th Serie A appearance against Lazio in the Rome Derby of 2009, which was his 200th appearance in the Rome Derby. He was a key player in midfield under new manager Claudio Ranieri, scoring a vital goal in a 2–1 home victory over Inter on March 27, 2010, as Roma continued to play out of the league title to Inter. Roma defeated Catania 1–0 on January 26, 2010, defeating Inter again in the Coppa Italia quarterfinals. De Rossi scored the decisive goal in the 1–0 victory over Catania on January 26, 2010.

The 2010–11 season was less fruitful, with Roma defeated by Inter in the 2010 Supercoppa Italiana and finished the Serie A season in sixth place and suffered a semi-final defeat in the Coppa Italia. De Rossi was named the best Italian Athlete of the Year by the Foreign Press Association in Italy on February 4, 2011.

De Rossi began a new five-year contract with Roma in February 2012. He became Italy's highest-paid footballer in Serie A under new coach Thomas R. DiBenedetto at €10 million (gross) per annum. Francesco Totti, the Italian player's previous record (€8.9 million in 2009-10) season, was Roma's previous best player. Roma finished seventh place under new manager Luis Enrique's tenure in 2011-2012 with 32 appearances and four goals.

De Rossi played less frequently in the 2012–13 season and appeared in just 25 matches. De Rossi's manager, Zden Zeman, was often critical of his team's results, and as a result, he was used with less often. De Rossi returned to action with more regularity after Aurelio Andreazzoli's arrival, but he didn't manage to score any goals.

Roma began the 2013–14 season under new manager Rudi Garcia, who won each of their first ten Serie A games. Roma's first goal of the season came against Livorno, who scored the first goal of the season. De Rossi was instrumental in the game against Napoli, scoring 0–0; Roma then went on to win thanks to two Miralem Pjani goals. After Francesco Totti was sidelined with a hamstring injury, he captained Roma, winning three straight draws against Torino, Sassuolo, and Cagliari, falling one point behind Juventus. De Rossi made his 318th appearance in Serie A on Saturday, defeating Roma legend Giuseppe Giannini's number of caps, while equalizing Roma's number of caps; the match was also his 400th appearance for Roma. De Rossi confessed that he was not positive if Roma would even challenge for the Scudetto in the long run, considering that both Juventus and Napoli had more experienced squads with greater depth. He also said in an interview that he was close to joining Manchester United in the summer, but that the transfer did not take place because it was too late in the transfer process. He also stated that he was glad that he stayed at Roma for now, that moving to United would not have been the right idea at the time, considering Roma's solid start. As Roma lost their first game of the season after a break against league leaders Juventus in a 3–0 loss on January 5th. De Rossi was one of two Roma players to be dismissed within a minute in the first game after the winter break against league champions Juventus. They now sit in second place, eight points behind the Bianconeri, after the defeat. De Rossi achieved and later overtook legendary Roma goalkeeper Guido Masetti, becoming the third-highest appearance holders in Serie A history for Roma on May 11, 2014, with 338 league appearances.

De Rossi scored his first goal in almost a year on October 29, 2014, defeating Cesena 2–0. Roma defeated Empoli and advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2014–15 Coppa Italia on January 20. He scored the decisive penalty in extra time in extra time.

De Rossi scored in a 3–1 home win over Empoli in his 500th appearance for Roma in all competitions during the 2015–16 season. In a 4–4 away draw against Bayer Leverkusen in the 2015–16 Champions League, he scored twice twice.

De Rossi scored in a 3–2 home victory over Genoa on May 28, 2017, allowing Roma to finish in second place in Serie A and secure a Champions League group stage spot for the following season. De Rossi signed a new 2-year deal with Roma on May 31.

De Rossi inherited the captain's armband ahead of the 2017-18 season, following Francesco Totti's retirement. He scored from the penalty spot during a 3–0 Champions League victory over FC Barcelona on April 10, 2018, helping Roma to beat a 4–1 deficit from the first leg on April 10th. Roma qualified to the semi-finals for the first time in the Champions League era, with the joint-second best comeback in the tournament's history.

De Rossi made his 600th appearance for Roma on September 26, 2018, defeating Frosinone 4–0, becoming the second player after Totti to reach this prestigious landmark.

Roma announced on May 14 that they did not renew De Rossi's deal nor that he will leave the club until the 2018-19 season, after 18 seasons with the club. In a 2–1 home victory over Parma on May 26, he made his 616th appearance for the club and his final appearance, making him the club's second-most capped player of all time after Totti.

De Rossi, a former player and assistant, played a lifelong admiration for Boca Juniors and its followers, which culminated in rumors surrounding a potential transfer to the club, which were also fuelled by the presence of former teammate Nicolás Burdisso as the club's sporting director while still at Roma. Following his release from Roma, negotiations started and he was officially signed by Boca on July 26, 2019. De Rossi made his Boca Juniors debut against Club Almagro in the Copa Argentina on August 13th, marking the occasion by scoring his first goal for the club in an eventual 1–1 draw; Boca Juniors were then banned from the tournament following a 3–1 loss on penalties. He made his Primera División debut on August 19th, leading to a 2–0 home win over Aldosivi at La Bombonera. On August 28, he made his Copa Libertadores debut, playing as a second-half substitute against L.D.U. Boca won by a 3–0 aggregate victory, while Boca was eliminated in the following round after a 2–1 aggregate loss to domestic rivals River Plate, a tie in which De Rossi did not appear.

De Rossi resigned from professional football on January 6, 2020, citing family reasons for his decision. Boca eventually finished as Primera División champions for the 2019-20 season.

International career

De Rossi is Italy's highest scoring midfielder, scoring 21 goals in 117 international appearances, and the second highest-scoring midfielder for Italy, behind only Adolfo Baloncieri. He is also the joint fourth-most cap for the Italian national team.

De Rossi played 16 games for Italy's national under-21 football team, as a regular first-team member of the 2004 European Under-21 Football Championship, scoring the first goal in Italy's 3–0 victory over Serbia and Montenegro in the final. He also earned a bronze medal in football with the Italy national football team at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in the same year.

De Rossi earned his first cap with the Italy senior squad on September 4, 2004, scoring on his international debut against Norway in a 2006 World Cup qualifying match at the age of 21. For the first time in the second half of a 0–0 friendly draw against Iceland on March 30, 2005, he wore Italy's captain's armband.

De Rossi was selected to Marcello Lippi's 23-man Italian squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, delivering a spectacular result in Italy's opening 2–0 victory over Ghana but also receiving a ticket in the tenth minute. He started his second group match against the United States, but he was given a straight red card after elbowing Brian McBride in the chest. McBride's pitch was bloody after surgery, but he recovered after recovery after care, receiving three stitches. De Rossi had "disgraced himself" on Brian McBride, according to the BBC, "he disgraced himself with a sickening, needless elbow." De Rossi later apologised to McBride, who then praised him as "class" for approaching him after the match. De Rossi was suspended for four matches as a result of the accident, and she was fined CHF 10,000.

De Rossi returned to the pitch against France in the World Cup final against France after being disqualified for four matches, serving as a substitute in the 61st minute for Roma teammate Francesco Totti. The match was played out after a 1–1 deadlock at extra time; De Rossi scored Italy's third goal to help his team win the shootout and their fourth World Cup title. De Rossi, who was 22 years old at the time, was Italy's youngest player in the World Cup team.

De Rossi appeared in all of Italy's Euro 2008 qualifying games under new coach Roberto Donadoni, scoring a goal against Georgia on October 12, 2006. De Rossi was also given the opportunity to wear the number 10 shirt after Totti's triumphant 2006 World Cup final in Italy. He captained the team on three occasions, including two friendly matches against South Africa on October 17th (his first appearance as Italy's captain), and Portugal against Faroe Islands in the Euro 2008 qualifier.

De Rossi appeared in all of Italy's remaining matches at UEFA Euro 2008. After missing out on Italy's opening 3–0 loss to the Netherlands, De Rossi continued to play in all of Italy's remaining matches at UEFA Euro 2008. Italy defeated France 2–0 in their final group match on Sunday, with the winner guaranteeing Italy's passage to the quarter-finals. He scored from a free kick that was deflected off Thierry Henry's left boot. De Rossi was dubbed Man of the Match by the BBC. His shot was saved by Iker Casillas in the quarter-final penalty shoot-out against eventual winners Spain, but Italy lost the game 4–2 after extra-time. In a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier match against Georgia, he scored his first double for the national team in a 2–0 home win over Georgia on September 10, 2008.

De Rossi was called to Lippi's Italy squad for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, and he was given the number 10 shirt for the tournament once more. De Rossi scored against the United States in the 71st minute of the competition's opening match, with a poor long-range strike. After Giuseppe Rossi's equalization, Italy went 2–1 up after Landon Donovan's opener from a penalty in the first half, Landon Donovan's penalty in the first half led to the goal. Italy advanced to 3–1 victory after Andrea Pirlo set up Rossi for his second game of the season; De Rossi was named Man of the Match. Italy lost its next two games against Egypt and Brazil, but, in the first round of the tournament, the tournament's first round was a draw between the United States and Egypt, but not by three points.

After Fabio Cannavaro's retirement, De Rossi was deemed by several in the media as a potential replacement for Italy's captainship. His ability to excel and score in important games as well as his pivotal role in breaking down the opposition's play as a box-to-box midfielder earned him respect from Italian fans. De Rossi has scored several crucial goals for Italy during their Euro 2008 and 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying seasons, while De Rossi's goal ratio was much higher than at club level, as he mainly played as a defensive midfielder for Roma, but he was able to play in more advanced positions for Italy, due to the presence of Gennaro Gattuso in the team's holding midfielder position.

Italy defeated Paraguay 11-0 in their first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, with De Rossi scoring Italy's first goal of the 2010 FIFA World Cup against Paraguay. As Italy drew 1–1, he drew a foul in the penalty area, which Vincenzo Iaquinta equalized, in the second match against New Zealand. Some in the media slammed De Rossi's decision to give the penalty, while others in the media thought that De Rossi had dived. De Rossi received the FIFA Man of the Match award despite the controversies. The defending champions of the tournament lost their final match against Slovakia 3–2, and were disqualified in the first round of the tournament, finishing in last place in their group without a win.

Following Lippi's departure from the 2010 World Cup in Italy's first match under new captain Cesare Prandelli, De Rossi was named captain, despite the absence of acting captain Andrea Pirlo; Italy lost 1–0. He scored his tenth goal for Italy in a 5–0 home victory over the Faroe Islands in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier; the goal enabled him to overtake Totti as Roma's highest goalscorer with the national team on September 7th.

De Rossi was selected to Prandelli's final 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2012 in May 2012. However, De Rossi played as a central defender in Prandelli's 3–5–2 formation, alongside Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, in Italy's first two group matches of the tournament against Spain and Croatia, which resulted in 1–1 draws, despite Andrea Barzagli's pre-tournament injury; he was briefly suspended alongside Pirlo and Marchisio alongside Pirlo and Marchisio in Italy's In the last group match against the Republic of Ireland, he played a more regular midfielder, as he partnered with Claudio Marchisio and Andrea Pirlo. In the quarter-finals, he continued to play as a midfielder against England, in which Italy lost after a penalty shootout victory. De Rossi completed the semifinals against Germany, winning the game 2–1, and then played all 90 minutes in Italy's 4–0 loss to Spain in the final. For his performances, De Rossi was chosen to be a member of the Tournament's Team.

De Rossi was named in Brazil for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, and he scored in a 4–3 victory over Japan in Italy's second group game. For the first time in Italy's history, the triumph enabled them to qualify to the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time in history. After a penalty shoot-out win over Uruguay in the bronze medal match in which De Rossi appeared, Italy eventually finished in third place in the tournament.

De Rossi was included in Prandelli's final 23-man squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, becoming the only Roma player to be selected to the national team. De Rossi had a dominant game in Italy's 2–1 victory over England in the Italian midfield, playing in front of the entire game and completing the most passes of any player since Andrea Pirlo's 99. Italy dominated the possession, with a 93.2 pass rate, and also held the highest pass accuracy percentage of any team in a World Cup match since Denmark in the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Italy lost all three group matches 1–0, but they were disqualified in the first round of the second consecutive World Cup for the second time in a row, finishing third in their group. De Rossi was also in the second group match against Costa Rica, but was unable to participate in Italy's 1–0 loss to Uruguay due to injury.

In a 2–0 friendly home win over the Netherlands in Bari on Thursday, De Rossi wore the captain's armband while also scoring a goal from a penalty. De Rossi earned his 100th cap in a 1–1 draw at the San Siro in Milan on November 16, 2014, in a UEFA Euro 2016 qualifier against Croatia. He scored from a penalty at the six-minute mark in Italy's 1–0 victory over Bulgaria in a Euro 2016 qualifying match in Palermo on September 6, 2015, and later suspended him after the match for a reactionary foul; both Giancarlo and Franco Causio were suspended. He was selected for Conte's 23-man Italy squad for UEFA Euro 2016 on May 31st. De Rossi limped off the field on 26 June in the eventual 2–0 victory round of 16 match against Spain, causing him to miss out on the quarterfinal match against Germany on July 2nd, which was decided by a score-out victory. Many thought an unfit De Rossi would have arrived only for the shoot-out, but when accused of refusing to take a kick, he replied, "Do I seem to be the type of guy who would refuse to step up to the spot?" Conte didn't ask me, so that's it. "I hadn't even warmed-up during the game."

De Rossi scored his 20th goal for Italy against Albania in a 2–0 home victory over Albania in a 2018 World Cup qualifier; with the goal, he equaled Paolo Rossi as Italy's twelfth highest goalscorer of all time. De Rossi made his 112th appearance for Italy in a 2–1 friendly away victory over the Netherlands on March 28th, equalling Dino Zoff as Italy's joint fifth-highest appearance holder; however, he was forced to leave in the 35th minute due to an injury and was subsequently replaced by debutant Roberto Gagliardini.

He made his 117th international appearance in a 1–0 away loss to Sweden in the first leg of the World Cup play-offs on November 10th, defeating Pirlo as Italy's fourth-most capped player of all time; this was his final international appearance. Following a 1–0 aggregate loss to Sweden in the second leg on November 13, Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. De Rossi's goal gave Sweden the go-ahead goal. De Rossi resigned from the national team immediately after the second leg match. Despite De Rossi's absence from the second leg, he was still at the forefront of media coverage due to an incident that occurred while sitting on the bench. In spite of a lot of pressure from the Italian media and fan feedback, De Rossi said he refused to warm up three at a time and instead pointed angrily at Napoli forward Lorenzo Insigne, a player whose national team's boss, Gian Piero Ventura, who had neither started nor continued; after five minutes, we change and three more go. We were near to the end and had to win, so let the strikers warm up! I like Insigne as well. It wasn't up to me if it was a tactical issue, but Prof [Ventura] is a lovely guy, so I'm sorry if I offended anyone. I was just curious that Insigne had come on instead."

Coaching career

De Rossi declared his intention to become a mentor and was quickly linked to several Serie A managerial vacancies between 2020 and 2021, including Fiorentina, Crotone, and Cagliari, all while not having the UEFA Pro Licence licence to serve as head coach in Italy's top flight immediately after retirement. De Rossi started the UEFA A licence course in December 2020. De Rossi was named as Roberto Mancini's next assistant in charge of Italy's national team on March 18, 2021. Italy won the UEFA Euro 2020 on penalty shootout after a 1–1 draw on extra time against England in the final on July 11-2021.

He later left the Italian team to complete his UEFA A coaching program; following that, he moved back to Italy's Football Federation, this time as a technical advisor for the Under-15 to Under-20 youth representatives. In January 2022, he promised to rejoin Roberto Mancini's staff to help with the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification playoffs.

De Rossi and fellow 2006 FIFA World Cup winners Marco Amelia, Andrea Barzagli, and Alessandro Del Piero were accepted to the UEFA Pro yearly coaching course organized by the Italian Football Federation in September 2022.

De Rossi was appointed as the new head of SPAL's Serie B side on October 11, 2022.

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