True cost of Giovanni Leoni’s knee injury becomes clear as Italian press make gut-wrenching claim

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Liverpool have been put in a bit of a pickle thanks to Giovanni Leoni’s injury.

The centre-back made his debut for Liverpool in their third round Carabao Cup tie against Southampton, where they managed to win 2-1.

The Italian had a rather impressive game as he was arguably the best centre-back out of him and Joe Gomez, with the Englishman having a game he’ll likely want to forget.

Although the extent of Leoni’s injury was unknown, Fabrizio Romano has now reported that the 18-year-old has torn his ACL.

This means Leoni will likely be out until the end of the season, with his chances of making Italy’s World Cup squad now in tatters.

Gennaro Gattuso was about to ‘launch’ Giovanni Leoni into Italy’s national team

Although Leoni was called up to Italy’s national squad last time around, Gennaro Gattuso never gave him a minute on the pitch.

This meant that most fans were left confused by his inclusion in the squad, especially when he’s trying to figure out who deserves a call-up to Italy’s World Cup squad at the end of the season.

The World Cup will be the main thing on most players’ minds this term, with players such as Marc Guehi unlikely to move midway through a season due to the amount of playing time he’ll get with the Eagles.

In Leoni’s case, however, the injury couldn’t have come at a worse time, as, according to Corriere dello Sport, Gattuso was about to ‘launch’ the former Parma man into his national team.

“Leoni’s injury is also very bad news for the national team,” they wrote.

“After the last calls, Gattuso was in fact ready to launch him.”

Giovanni Leoni must come back from his injury stronger for Liverpool

Last season was Leoni’s breakout campaign.

The Italian was Parma’s best centre-back as he heavily featured for the Serie A outfit throughout the season.

And, even though Liverpool’s fans haven’t seen him play for a full 90 minutes yet, it’s clear that they have an impressive talent on their hands.

The centre-back is as tall as Virgil van Dijk and, since he’s only 18 years old, he still has plenty of room to grow into an even more impressive player than he already is.

At the moment, nobody knows how things are going to pan out for Leoni, but if he doesn’t come back fighting fit, he could find himself sitting on the sidelines or even loaned out as the 2026-27 season comes around.