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Wasps have agreed to sign Italy international Matteo Minozzi for the 2019-20 season – and announced the deal in unusual fashion on Monday.
Minozzi, who can play at full-back or on the wing, joins from Zebre after it was confirmed Elliot Daly would be departing the Ricoh Arena for Saracens.
The Premiership club revealed the news with a clip uploaded to social media in which Minozzi takes the place of legendary video game character ‘Super Mario’, adding the hashtag #SuperMatteo.
Minozzi has missed much of this season with a knee injury, which has kept him out of the Six Nations, and director of rugby Dai Young hopes Wasps can provide a platform for him to shine.
“Matteo has bags of promise and already at such a young age, he’s got plenty of international experience under his belt,” said Young.
“He was tremendous at last year’s Six Nations with four tries in five games, and it’s a shame we’re not going to see him in the tournament this year.
“No doubt when he recovers he will be playing at the World Cup – and hopefully he’ll be able to give Wasps fans a taste of what they’ll be seeing at the Ricoh next season.”
? #SuperMatteo ?? pic.twitter.com/FujP2MXpNn
— Wasps Rugby (@WaspsRugby) February 18, 2019
Minozzi, who was named in the official team of the tournament and was also shortlisted for the best player award after the 2018 Six Nations, is eager to challenge himself at a higher level.
He said: “Having spoken with friends of mine at Wasps, they couldn’t speak highly enough of the club.
“It was an easy decision for me and I can’t wait to test myself in the Premiership at a fantastic club with lots of history.”
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