Official: Napoli confirm Buongiorno injury

Napoli confirmed that Alessandro Buongiorno sustained a vertebrae injury in training which is likely to rule the centre-back out for the remaining games of 2024.

The Partenopei’s defensive cornerstone has only missed out on his side’s 3-0 defeat at Verona on the Serie A opening day before playing the entire 90 minutes for 15 consecutive games, including the last one away to Udinese last weekend.

Buongiorno out for at least three weeks with vertebrae injury

However, coach Antonio Conte will need to find a way to preserve Napoli’s solidity at the back without him after the club revealed that the 25-year-old fell in training and underwent subsequent medical tests highlighting a vertebral injury that will keep him sidelined for at least three weeks, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

“Alessandro Buongiorno was injured during training today,” Napoli said in an official statement published on Monday.

“The Italian defender, following a fall, sustained a fracture to the transverse processes of two lumbar vertebrae, as confirmed by tests conducted at the Pineta Grande Hospital.

Buongiorno will begin rehabilitation starting tomorrow.”

The Partenpoei made last summer’s heaviest investment to sign Buongiorno from Torino for €35m plus €5m in add-ons.

The centre-back would become irreplaceable for Antonio Conte by piling up a series of impressive defensive displays that recently persuaded Italy coach Luciano Spalletti to start him in the Azzurri’s back three.