Daniele De Rossi, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI, (July 24, 1983) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer, who plays for AS Roma. He is a combative central midfielder and a strong tackler with an eye for goal.

Club career

De Rossi, born in Rome and a product of the A.S. Roma youth system (where his father, former Roma player Alberto De Rossi, is a coach), he gradually became a key midfield player for the club. Strong, with good vision on the ball and a combative mentality, he made his first-team debut on October 10, 2001 against Belgian side RSC Anderlecht in the UEFA Champions League. He made his Serie A debut on May 3, 2003; his first Serie A start, and his first goal, came one week later against Torino Calcio.

De Rossi was praised by referee Mauro Bergonzi after he had scored a goal with his hand in a match against Messina. Bergonzi allowed the goal until De Rossi showed a great piece of fair play when admitting to the referee that he had pushed the ball in with his hand, the goal was disallowed and Roma went on to win 2-1.

In the 2006–2007 season, De Rossi went on to score a wonderful 40 yard screamer against Fiorentina with Sébastien Frey on goal. From the central left side of the pitch he went on to accommodate the ball on his stronger right foot, and then took a shot which curved away from a shocked Frey, who got a slight touch on the ball, but couldn’t stop it from going in. This was the first of three goals of the night for Roma, which set the game alight and inspired a 3-1 second half win over Fiorentina.

In the 2007-08 UEFA Champions League quarter-final, in which Roma were playing Manchester United, De Rossi missed a penalty which could have proved vital in Old Trafford.

International career

De Rossi played many matches in the Italy national under-21 football team, winning as a regular the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. In the same year, he collected a bronze medal with the Italy national football team at the Athens Olympics. A few weeks after returning from Greece, De Rossi earned his first cap in the senior squad, scoring on his debut in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Norway (2-1), at the age of 21.

De Rossi was named to the Italian national team in 2006. During a 2006 FIFA World Cup group play match against the United States, De Rossi received a straight red card after he elbowed Brian McBride in the face. McBride left the pitch bloodied, but returned after treatment and later required three stitches. De Rossi later apologized to McBride (who subsequently praised De Rossi as "classy" for approaching him after the match). De Rossi was banned for four matches and fined CHF 10,000 for the cheap shot.

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