Giuseppe Rossi

Early career

When offered a spot on the youth team of Parma, Rossi (then 12) and his father moved to Italy until Manchester United bought his contract when he was 17. His first-team debut came on 20 November 2004, at home to Crystal Palace in the fifth round of the League Cup, as an 84th-minute substitute for David Bellion. For his Premier League debut on 15 October 2005, he came on in the 78th minute for Ruud van Nistelrooy and nine minutes later scored the last goal in a 3–1 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. On 18 January 2006, in an FA Cup third-round replay, he started and scored twice as United beat non-league Burton Albion 5–0. Although Rossi did not play in the League Cup final against Wigan Athletic, Nemanja Vidić (who made a seven-minute cameo at the end of the game) gave Rossi his medal in recognition of Rossi's contribution to the team's success in the earlier rounds. At the start of the 2006–07 season, Rossi moved to Newcastle United on loan until 1 January 2007, where he was expected to gain some first team experience. He made his home debut on 24 September 2006. Rossi scored his only Newcastle goal in his first start on 25 October 2006, against Portsmouth in a League Cup third 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, scoring nine goals in 19 league appearances.

Villarreal

On 31 July 2007, Manchester United confirmed that Rossi had been sold to…

Rossi represented Italy at almost every youth level from under-16 to under-21 levels. In 2006, he was invited to a pre-World Cup training camp with the United States national team by coach Bruce Arena but declined, stating his desire to play for Italy. He was called up for the 2007 Under-21 European Championship by Italy under-21 head coach Pierluigi Casiraghi. The following year, he scored four goals at the 2008 Summer Olympics, making him the top scorer of the tournament, despite only reaching the quarter-finals with Italy, following a 3–2 loss to Belgium on 16 August, in which he scored twice from the penalty spot; his other two goals came in the opening match of the competition – a 3–0 win against Honduras on 7 August, in which he scored the second goal of the game from a penalty – and in Italy's second group match on 10 August – a 3–0 win over Korea Republic – in which he scored the opening goal. Italy national football team manager Marcello Lippi stated that had Rossi been fit, he would have received a call-up for the 2010 World Cup qualifiers in September 2008. Rossi was called up to the Italy squad in October 2008, making his senior debut for the national team as a second-half substitute in a 0–0 away draw against Bulgaria on 11 October, in a 2010 World Cup qualifier. Rossi scored his first goal for the Italy national team on 6 June 2009, in a friendly against Northern Ireland, at Pisa's Arena Garibaldi. He also scored two goals in a 3–1 win against his country of…

A quick and mobile left-footed forward, Rossi was known for his overall attacking and creative style of play, as well as his work-rate, movement off the ball, his powerful and accurate striking ability, and instincts in the box. Regarded as one of the most promising Italian players of his generation in his youth, his playing style has often been compared to that of compatriot Alessandro Del Piero, due to his acceleration, strong technical skills, range of passing, dribbling talents, and his ability to either score goals or pick out a pass and create chances for teammates; he was also compared to his namesake, 1982 World Cup-winning striker Paolo Rossi, due to his opportunism, pace, agility, and eye for goal. In 2013, former Fiorentina playmaker Giancarlo Antognoni likened Rossi to fellow former Fiorentina number ten Roberto Baggio, "In terms of his touch and creativity." Giuseppe Rossi was known for his ability to both finish off chances and link-up well with midfielders; due to his abilities, he often dropped deep between the lines and was involved in the buildup of plays. Because of this, Rossi was able to play in a variety of attacking positions, including on the wings, as a supporting striker, as a lone-striker, and in an attacking midfield role. He was also an accurate penalty taker. Despite his talent, skill, and goalscoring ability, Rossi's playing time was limited in later seasons due to several recurring injury problems.

Rossi is Italian American, born to Italian immigrant parents in Teaneck, New Jersey. His father, Fernando Rossi from Fraine, Abruzzo, coached soccer and taught Italian and Spanish at Clifton High School. His mother, Cleonilde Rossi from Acquaviva d'Isernia, Molise, was also a language teacher at Clifton, and his sister, Tina, currently lives in the United States. Rossi played prep soccer at Clifton High School. After his father died in 2010, Rossi began to wear the number 49, which was the year of his father's birth. In 2014, he switched back to the number 22 jersey. On 1 December 2020, his daughter was born.