Former Rangers striker Marco Negri has revealed that he quit football with the Scottish club after fearing that he had contracted HIV.

The Italian suffered a deep shin wound in a match against Aberdeen reserves in November 2000, which bled profusely and caused him to be admitted to hospital.

Further scans a couple of months later showed that properties of his blood had been attacked by a lymphogranuloma or lymphosarcoma - common symptoms for those that suffer with HIV/AIDS.

"I had to return to Italy, and not on a temporary basis," says Negri in his autobiography. "I asked my lawyer to speak to Rangers about an early dissolution of my contract.

"They had no objections to the premature ending of our relationship, which was something I really appreciated, although it also showed me how serious my condition was.

"Luckily, I didn't have to wait long to learn I was simply suffering a stress fracture of the tibial axis of the knee. This diagnosis was given by doctors in Bologna. In Scotland they hadn't got it right this time, even if the results of three blood tests confirmed some anomalies that couldn't be overlooked."

Negri joined the Glasgow side from Perugia for £3.5million in 1997, and scored 23 goals in his first 10 league games for the club.