The Qatar World Cup will host an array of stars both young and old when the tournament kicks off on November 20. However, several players, who have previously made an impact at the FIFA World Cup, and were expected to make a first-time splash, will not feature for their teams, despite being fit.
Sergio Ramos (Spain)
Spain’s Sergio Ramos, a World Cup and two-time European Championship winning centre-back, will not make the trip to Qatar. Ramos, 36, has been out of the national team picture ever since his injury-plagued 2021-22 season.
Ramos has been a rock in the back for his club side Paris Saint-Germain this season but ultimately the national team manager Luis Enrique has opted against his inclusion.
Mats Hummels (Germany)
Mats Hummels, another World Cup winner, has been out of favour since Hansi Flick took over the German national team. The 33-year-old had a forgetful European Championship last summer, where Germany crashed out in the round of 16.
Ferland Mendy (France)
Real Madrid’s starting left-back Ferland Mendy is a notable miss from the 2022 World Cup. France, however, is adequately stacked in that position with Lucas and Theo Hernandez, both of whom have been integral under Didier Deschamps for the last few years.
Roberto Firmino (Brazil)
Firmino has not been in a Brazil squad since July 2021 and spent an injury-riddled campaign with Liverpool where he played just 20 matches in the league. But this season, he has scored seven goals in the league in 13 matches but Tite has ignored the attacker for the World Cup.
Jadon Sancho (England)
Sancho has failed to reproduce his Borussia Dortmund form after his £73 million move to Manchester United last year. He was dropped from the England squad last November and hasn’t made a comeback since. The 21-year-old’s last memory in an England shirt was his miss in the penalty shootout defeat in the Euro final in 2021.
Renato Sanches (Portugal)
Renato Sanches had the world at his feet after taking his team to Euro glory in 2016, where he was named the best young player of the tournament. Since then, he has struggled with form and injuries, and has found himself switching clubs in the last six years. The 25-year-old is now playing regularly at Paris Saint-Germain but his form wasn’t enough to convince manager Fernando Santos.
Ivan Toney (England)
The Brentford striker was a notable miss in the England squad. Toney adds a new dimension to England’s attack with his hold-up play, aerial ability and also can take free-kicks but manager Gareth Southgate has excluded the 25-year-old, who has 10 goals this season. He also scored twice at the home of Manchester City after being left out of the touring party to Qatar.
Thiago Alcantara (Spain)
Thiago’s omission also seems to suggest Spain looking into the future. The 31-year-old, who has a history of injury concerns, has been out of Luis Enrique’s plans since the end of the Euros last year.
Mitch Langerak (Australia)
There was furore in Australia over the exclusion of goalkeeper Mitch Langerak after he was asked to come out of retirement by coach Graham Arnold but was left out nevertheless. Australia has two strong ‘keepers in Mat Ryan as first choice and Andrew Redmayne as back-up choice.
Ricardo Pepi (USA)
Pepi was a surprise omission from the USA squad. The 19-year-old striker has been touted as one of the leading talents to emerge from the Major League Soccer last year. But his move to Bundesliga with Augsburg in January has coincided with a dip in form, which may have contributed to his exclusion from the USA team. Pepi hasn’t scored for both club and country in the calendar year.
Comments
SHARE