My introduction to Daniele De Rossi was the vicious elbow that he threw at Brian McBride, leaving his face bloody in the USA vs Italy match in the 2006 World Cup. It left a negative impression of him but here is De Rossi doing something rare in football nowadays, acknowledging that he used his hand to score a goal against Serie side Messina.
Roma were down a goal and this would have been a welcome equalizer. For that he deserves all the kudos he can get.
One can argue that the stakes are not as high as as an entry to the world’s biggest stage which only happens every four years. But De Rossi shows us how Thierry Henry could have changed the discourse on the Ireland vs France match.
He might have had parents in Ireland name their babies after him. In France, Raymond Domenech’s painful reign would have come to an end. And maybe we would not be subjected to Richard Williams writing crap like this. Then again, I am not so sure (about Williams).