Reds stunned by Borini blow
Borini, who was training with the U21 side ahead of tonight’s European Championship qualifier clash with Sweden, went for an MRI scan yesterday which revealed the injury.
The news will be a major blow to Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers, who is left with only one recognised senior striker in Luis Suarez.
The 21-year-old, a summer signing from Roma, has played 10 matches for Liverpool this season, scoring just once — in the Europa League qualifying win over Gomel in August.
With Andy Carroll on a season-long loan to Premier League rivals West Ham, Rodgers is facing a striking dilemma ahead of the next match, at home to Reading on October 20.
News of Borini’s injury came on the day it emerged that Italian legend Alessandro Del Piero rejected a summer move to Anfield out of respect for victims of the Heysel disaster.
Thirty-nine Juventus fans were killed before the start of the 1985 European Cup final at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels — with hundreds injured — after Liverpool fans broke through a fence and caused a wall to collapse. A 10-year-old Juve fan at the time of the tragedy, Del Piero went on to make 705 appearances and score 290 goals for the Nerazzurri.
But after 19 years with the Turin giants, 11 of those spent as captain, the former Italy international was not offered a new contract at the end of last season.
Ambitious Australian outfit Sydney FC emerged as the frontrunner for his signature but that did not dissuade Liverpool from making a late bid for his services.
But Del Piero revealed that a move to Merseyside was never likely given the strength of feeling at his former club.
He said: “The negotiations with Sydney were already at an advanced stage and then I thought about what happened at Heysel.
“Juve and Liverpool have worked hard to mend their relationship, but for a lot of people it’s something that can never be forgotten.’’
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