The Hindu : Sport / Football : Nesta ruled out of quarterfinals

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Thursday, Jun 29, 2006

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Nesta ruled out of quarterfinals

DUISBURG: Italy defender Alessandro Nesta will miss Friday's World Cup quarterfinal match against Ukraine with a right thigh injury.

Nesta, bothered by the muscle problem for several months, aggravated the injury in Italy's win over the Czech Republic in the first round and was sidelined for the victory over Australia in the second round.

``It's a lot better and I'm very confident I'll play again soon, but not for this game,'' Nesta said on Wednesday after a new round of medical exams. ``I'll do everything I can to play the (following) game.''

Marco Materazzi replaced Nesta against Australia but picked up a red card after 50 minutes and will also miss the Ukraine game. That leaves the starting job to inexperienced Andrea Barzagli, who plays for Palermo.

``Our bench players have done very well at this World Cup when they've come in, they've given a big contribution,'' Nesta said, recalling Materazzi's goal against the Czech Republic.

``Barzagli is young but he's a real solid guy,'' Nesta added. ``The main thing about him though is that he's very strong physically and I think that's going to help him a lot in the next game.'' — AP

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