Boss Marcello Lippi insists that injury is the only reason why Antonio Cassano has left the Italian national squad.
The Roman today pulled out of the midweek clash against Russia after medical tests confirmed the presence of a knee problem.
Given Cassano’s troubled past, some whispers suggested that there may have been a more sinister reason for his absence but the tactician insists that is simply not true.
"Cassano didn’t refuse to come to the Coverciano training base," stated the former Juventus Coach.
"It is only normal that a player comes here to meet with his teammates and the tactician.
"The Roman manifested his desire to be a part of this set-up again, we spoke for a while and he was disappointed to leave. Just as I am.
"I want to clear up this situation once and for all. I name my squad an hour after the games finish on a Sunday.
"I wait until then because it gives me the time to be contacted by the clubs with news of any injuries.
"At 18.00 hours yesterday, only the Sampdoria medical man contacted us with news of an injury."
Cassano, who was followed out of the camp by the injured Samp star Aimo Diana, is already receiving treatment on a knee injury.
There are hopes that he could recover in time to feature at some stage against Inter on Saturday night.
发表于 2005-2-8 09:19:00
发表于 2005-2-8 21:03:00