EXCLUSIVE: Former Italy striker Rossi describes heartbreak of missing World Cup

Yet there is another Rossi, Giuseppe, whom gods and men prevented from leaving his mark on the most beautiful and prestigious competition of all.

The World Cup, after all, is a ruthless showcase: the absences of those left out weigh like boulders. It's a limbo that traps world-class talents forced to watch the party from afar, due to a quirk of geography for many, including Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, George Weah, and Ryan Giggs; or, as in the case of "Pepito" (the Italian-American striker's nickname), due to the cruel intersection of clinical bad luck and managerial decisions.

He chased that stage until his knees and soul were worn bare: stopped one step away from the finish line in 2010, and was brutally cut in 2014. Today, with the clarity of someone who hasn't forgotten the sting of the wound, he opens his heart. An intimate journey through shattered dreams, pure talent, and a profound, mad love for the Azzurri.

Kvaratskhelia, the best player in Europe, isn’t at the World Cup. And being Georgian, it’s possible he never will be. Even Gianluigi Donnarumma, among the best goalkeepers in the world, has never participated. From your perspective, as a champion who missed out on playing in a World Cup, how do they feel? What does it mean for a player to know how good they are but not be able to be there? 

“Everyone wants to test themselves against the best, and the World Cup is the biggest stage there is to do that. The players you mentioned definitely feel a sense of longing when they watch the games - that happened, and still happens, to me when I tune in. Unfortunately, missing out on a World Cup hurts a great champion on a personal level, because it’s the dream every footballer nurtures from childhood.

"However, I don't believe a player's career should be judged based on whether or not they participated in this tournament. Players like Kvaratskhelia, Weah, and Giggs, despite never having taken part, are still considered among the absolute greats in football history. If anything, it makes their careers even more prestigious: they come from countries that struggle to produce top-tier footballing talent, yet they still managed to reach the absolute pinnacle of the sport."

Back in 2010, you were part of the pre-World Cup training camp, but were eventually left out. What did you feel on that occasion? 

“2010 was the first heartbreak with Marcelo Lippi in the national team. He didn't take me because he thought I wasn't emotionally ready; it was the year I lost my father. The truth is, I was fired up and motivated because I wanted to play for him, to make him proud.

"But then I remember Mister Lippi saying in an interview that one of the biggest regrets of his career was not taking me to the World Cup. We've seen each other since, and I respect him immensely as a man. I always thank him, because he was the one who gave me my national team debut and trusted me in a squad full of world champions."

Tell me your story of what happened in 2014. The incredible season in Florence, then the injury, the pre-World Cup camp, the friendly against Ireland, and the exclusion. In the middle of all that, Cesare Prandelli’s promises and an Italy that was waiting for Rossi to be the new Baggio. 

“It was a year that started brilliantly with Fiorentina: Serie A top scorer, playing at a very high level, and back to being a cornerstone of the national team. Then, in January, the knee injury.

"I managed to get back on the pitch for the last month of the season, and I was playing well, too. In the national team training camp, I told the manager that I would amaze him with my performances and fitness tests. And they did go incredibly well, and the words the manager said to other players led me to believe I was going to the World Cup. I was thrilled. I had spent intense, lonely months striving for that goal.

"When he called me into his office, I already felt sick to my stomach: I knew what he was about to say. The manager let me down as a person… I didn't expect it. I walked out in tears, packed my bags, and the next day I flew home to America. It was a tough moment, because my dream had been ripped away."

Is there anything in your behaviour or attitude that might have penalised you? 

“Absolutely not, I have zero regrets. Like I said, I worked day and night to achieve the World Cup goal. I have never disrespected anyone during my career.

"I’ve learned that you have to control what you can control. If others see things differently, you can still walk around with your head held high, because I carried myself the right way, leaving absolutely no room for doubt within myself regarding my work, both as a footballer on the pitch and as a person off it."

Have you had a chance to speak with Prandelli about that decision since? Have you somehow made peace with it, or does it still sting? 

“It still stings, and it always will when I think back to that moment. But I’ve learned not to dwell on it too much, because it’s in the past now, and it’s an ugly thing to live in the past. It’s part of my story. And no, I haven’t heard from Prandelli since. Who knows, maybe one day."

How would you describe your relationship with the Azzurri shirt, bearing in mind you are Italian-American? 

“I have a beautiful relationship with the Azzurri shirt. A dream that came true.

"I would have loved to have more opportunities to wear it, to feel that immense pressure you experience when representing your country in prestigious tournaments like the World Cup and the Euros. I got to play in the Olympics and the Confederations Cup, but those two tournaments (World Cup and European Championship) are the ones every single one of us footballers dreams of playing in.

"Unfortunately, they were taken from me by injuries, and because of that, I always feel like I have unfinished business with the national team."

Let’s broaden the scope: how are the United States experiencing this World Cup as a host nation? 

“It's a true spectacle. I’m genuinely surprised by the organisation and security around the stadiums and in the cities. I managed to watch a match live, and I have to say the pre-match show was thrilling.

"Furthermore, the engagement of Americans around the country is extraordinary. They are highly interested, and their curiosity keeps growing... it’s all anyone talks about! I hope this momentum continues even after the World Cup.

"So far, a spectacular World Cup."

What kind of World Cup would it have been with you there? What kind of Italy would it have been? Have you ever thought about it? 

“Of course I’ve thought about it. So many thoughts have crossed my mind. Facing the best players in the world, scoring crucial goals and giving fans unforgettable emotions, battling for 90 minutes and leaving everything on the pitch alongside your teammates… all of this has run through my head a thousand times. But I think that’s normal for someone who always dreamed of playing in it."

Last question: in your opinion, why has Italy been missing from the World Cup for so long? And what can we do to get back there? 

“The fear of evolving as a federation. Unfortunately, there are many who feel too comfortable in their positions of power, so they tell each other, 'Why change?' The results are what we see now, and now we need to start from scratch and change things drastically.

"It will take time and patience to return to the top, but I’m confident. We are Italy!”

Certain absences in football history make much more noise than many presences. Giuseppe Rossi has never stepped onto a World Cup pitch, yet his legacy escapes the coldness of the record books. What remains is the portrait of a man who faced destiny and the choices of others with his head held high, without ever holding back, and the enduring regret for an Italy that, with him, could have written an entirely different story.