appearances in all competitions. At the start of the 1999–00 season, Zebina, however, suffered ankle injury that saw him out for the first two months to the season. But he made his first appearance of the season, starting a match and played 76 minutes, in a 2–2 draw against Milan on 17 October 1999. Following his return from injury, Zebina appeared four more matches before being on the sidelines once again for two matches. Following his return, he continued to regain his first team place, playing in the right–back position. However, he was unable to help the club, as Cagliari were relegated to Serie B. During his time at the club, Zebina made fifty–eight appearances in all competitions for the Sardinian club between 1998 and 2000. Roma In June 2000, Zebina moved to A.S. Roma in a co-ownership deal for 9.5 billion Italian lire. Upon joining the club, he linked up with up with countryman and fellow full-back Vincent Candela and said: "I am very happy to be here. This is a big step for me from a professional point of view. I will try to give the best of myself. It doesn't scare me if I have to start off the bench. It will be a pleasure for me to fight for a place as a starter. My goal is to win against Roma and try to become stronger than Thuram." Zebina made his debut for the club, starting the whole game, in a 4–1 win against ND Gorica in the first round of the UEFA Cup. He helped Roma keep a clean sheet in the return leg by beating the opposition team 7–0 to advance to the next round. Zebina followed up by helping the club keep two clean sheets in the next two matches against Bologna and Leece. However, he suffered an injury that saw him miss two matches. But Zebina made his return to the starting line–up against Reggina on 12 November 2000 and helped Roma beat the opposition team 2–1. However, his return was short–lived when he suffered a broken toe during a match against Perugia on 3 December 2000 and was substituted in the 43rd minute, as the club drew 0–0. After a month on the sidelines, Zebina returned to the first team against Bari on 14 January 2001, coming on as a 55th-minute substitute, in a 1–1. However, he found himself on the