Gennaro Gattuso is never far away from the spotlight and, as another major tournament beckons, the midfield dynamo has managed to dominate the news agenda once again.
With Italy finding themselves in the so-called 'group of death' along with World Cup final rivals France, Holland and Romania, the question on everyone's lips should be how the Azzurri will fare in this summer's European Championships.
Instead, Gattuso's future with AC Milan is the hot topic as we head towards the end of the season and a summer of international football.
If recent reports in the Italian press are to be believed, the 30-year-old is not only set to bid 'arrivederci' to the San Siro, but also to Serie A.
It has been a poor season for both AC Milan and Gattuso.
The Rossoneri are battling for a fourth-place finish that would secure a Champions League berth for next term and have a player in Gattuso fighting to rediscover the form which saw him crowned a world champion with Italy in 2006 and a European champion with his club last season.
However, nine excellent years' service since his 1999 switch from Salernitana has allowed him to retain an enduring love affair with the fans, who, in a recent poll, voted him Milan's ideal future captain once current skipper Paolo Maldini retires.
His representative, Claudio Pasqualin, went some way to quashing rumours of a summer departure when he claimed: "Rino is a Rossonero through and through like few others."
Meanwhile, Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani was also keen to play down talk of a transfer, adding: "Rino has a long contract with Milan and he is a big Rossoneri fan....everything seems to indicate that Rino will remain here for a long time."
It is true that Gattuso is contracted to Milan for a further three years but that has not stopped the rumour-mill linking him with some of European football's biggest hitters.
Manchester United, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are all believed to be admirers, with some reports even suggesting he has already struck a deal with the Bundesliga giants.
If Gattuso does choose to leave Milan, and Italian football behind, it will be his first venture overseas since a 16-month spell with Rangers a decade ago.
He was plucked from Perugia as a 19-year-old tyro and introduced to the Scottish Premier League by Walter Smith, who took advantage of an Italian federation loophole to sign the youngster as an amateur.
The young Rino may have been unrefined and lacked a certain amount of class back in those days but he boasted enough raw talent to make 40 appearances for the Glasgow giants until the arrival of Dick Advocaat in 1998.
Advocaat did not favour the young Italian and, after just a handful of matches where he was played out of position as a right-back, Gattuso was offloaded to recently-promoted Salernitana for £4million.
It was back in his homeland that he would come to the attention of AC Milan and win an £8million move to the San Siro 12 months later.
With Euro 2008 and another shot at glory beckoning, only Gattuso himself can write the next chapter in what has been an intriguing story so far.
Instead, Gattuso's future with AC Milan is the hot topic as we head towards the end of the season and a summer of international football.
If recent reports in the Italian press are to be believed, the 30-year-old is not only set to bid 'arrivederci' to the San Siro, but also to Serie A.
It has been a poor season for both AC Milan and Gattuso.
The Rossoneri are battling for a fourth-place finish that would secure a Champions League berth for next term and have a player in Gattuso fighting to rediscover the form which saw him crowned a world champion with Italy in 2006 and a European champion with his club last season.
However, nine excellent years' service since his 1999 switch from Salernitana has allowed him to retain an enduring love affair with the fans, who, in a recent poll, voted him Milan's ideal future captain once current skipper Paolo Maldini retires.
His representative, Claudio Pasqualin, went some way to quashing rumours of a summer departure when he claimed: "Rino is a Rossonero through and through like few others."
Meanwhile, Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani was also keen to play down talk of a transfer, adding: "Rino has a long contract with Milan and he is a big Rossoneri fan....everything seems to indicate that Rino will remain here for a long time."
It is true that Gattuso is contracted to Milan for a further three years but that has not stopped the rumour-mill linking him with some of European football's biggest hitters.
Manchester United, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are all believed to be admirers, with some reports even suggesting he has already struck a deal with the Bundesliga giants.
If Gattuso does choose to leave Milan, and Italian football behind, it will be his first venture overseas since a 16-month spell with Rangers a decade ago.
He was plucked from Perugia as a 19-year-old tyro and introduced to the Scottish Premier League by Walter Smith, who took advantage of an Italian federation loophole to sign the youngster as an amateur.
The young Rino may have been unrefined and lacked a certain amount of class back in those days but he boasted enough raw talent to make 40 appearances for the Glasgow giants until the arrival of Dick Advocaat in 1998.
Advocaat did not favour the young Italian and, after just a handful of matches where he was played out of position as a right-back, Gattuso was offloaded to recently-promoted Salernitana for £4million.
It was back in his homeland that he would come to the attention of AC Milan and win an £8million move to the San Siro 12 months later.
With Euro 2008 and another shot at glory beckoning, only Gattuso himself can write the next chapter in what has been an intriguing story so far.
Copyright (c) Press Association
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