Baggio to retire after knee operation

Italian striker Roberto Baggio is retiring after undergoing a knee operation on Monday for a serious injury he sustained last week, his agent has revealed.

The 34-year-old Brescia player was pushing for a place in the Italian squad at this summer's World Cup after a good start to the season but the reconstruction surgery looks to have sidelined him for at least five months.

Baggio's agent Vittorio Petrone was quoted on the BBC website as saying: "We were hoping for a different outcome right from the beginning of the medical tests but now Roberto wants to quit football. He wants to change his lifestyle."

"We will try to change his mind. Personally, I have one more dream -- to see him return to the football field," he added.

"Even if he has missed his chance with the World Cup, he deserves to return to playing."

Baggio was stretchered off with an injured left knee after coming on as a substitute during Brescia's Italian Cup semifinal match at Parma on Thursday.

It was only his second game back after three months out with an injury to the same knee.

Baggio played in the last three World Cups, making his mark on the 1990 tournament in Italy with a fine individual strike against Czechoslovakia before leading the Azzurri to third place.

Also read: Baggio says he could retire at end of season