The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar happening from 20th November will see a lot of top tier players missing out due to various injuries.
Even though most countries have already announced their World Cup squads, some athletes are still in a race against time to recover from injuries in time for the World Cup in Qatar.
Numerous international football stars are expected to miss the tournament in Qatar, including Paul Pogba of France, who has now been ruled out owing to a persistent knee issue.
Pogba suffered a preseason knee injury that required surgery to repair a torn meniscus in September. The 29-year-old started working out again, but his agent announced on October 31 that the midfielder would not play again for either Juventus or the world champions before the World Cup.
Reece James is out after failing to recover from a knee injury in time, and as the World Cup draws nearer, Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips are still working their way back to health.
Ben Chilwell, a defender for Chelsea, has announced that he will miss the 2022 World Cup after getting seriously hurt during Chelsea’s victory over Dinamo Zagreb.
Heung-Min Son of South Korea was another player whose World Cup readiness was believed to be in jeopardy.
The Tottenham forward, 30, suffered a fracture around his left eye on Tuesday during his team’s 2-1 victory over Marseille. He underwent surgery to stabilize the fracture, but he has since declared himself healthy.
Takehiro Tomiyasu is expected to be a significant player for Hajime Moriyasu’s team in Japan’s squad for the Qatar match, which has been announced.
His participation had been in doubt due to a muscle injury sustained in the closing minutes of Arsenal’s Europa League victory over Zurich, but following some encouraging developments, the full-back is now anticipated to join the Japan team in Qatar.
Takehiro Tomiyasu is expected to be a significant player for Hajime Moriyasu’s team in Japan’s squad for the Qatar match, which has been announced.
His participation had been in doubt due to a muscle injury sustained in the closing minutes of Arsenal’s Europa League victory over Zurich, but following some encouraging developments, the full-back is now anticipated to join the Japan team in Qatar.
Player Likely to miss the World Cup
Less than two weeks before the World Cup kicked off, Sadio Mane was pulled out during Bayern Munich’s 6-1 thrashing of Werder Bremen due to an injury.
Only 20 minutes had passed before Mane left the game due to a leg injury; this was 13 days before Senegal’s tournament opener against the Netherlands.
Alphonso Davies’ injury in Bayern Munich’s 3-2 victory over Hertha Berlin just 15 days before the World Cup is scheduled to begin may deal Canada another devastating setback ahead of their first World Cup.
On the 64th minute, the full-back left the game and was replaced by Lucas Hernandez. He had just over two weeks to heal from this setback in order to be ready for the World Cup.
Sadio Mane of Senegal could now miss the tournament after limping out of Bayern Munich’s match against Werder Bremen.
Gini Wijnaldum, who shattered his leg in August, will undoubtedly be missed by the Netherlands, but Paulo Dybala and Angel Di Maria appear to be winning their individual struggles with calf and hamstring problems to represent Argentina. Giovani Lo Celso’s hamstring problem, though, raises some questions.
There was also good news for Germany supporters, as Manuel Neuer is getting closer to recovering from his shoulder injury. However, unlike his French teammate Lucas Hernandez from Bayern Munich, who is recovering from a groin injury, there won’t be much time to get match-ready.
After admitting he had skin cancer treatment, Neuer may also be in danger of missing out. Since the beginning of October, the 36-year-old hasn’t appeared for Bayern.
Players that will miss the 2022 FIFA World Cup:
These prominent athletes will miss the World Cup due to injuries.
- Paul Pogba (France)
- Ben Chilwell (England)
- Timo Werner (Germany)
- Diogo Jota (Portugal)
- Reece James (England)
- N’Golo Kante (France)
- Pedro Neto (Portugal)
- Boubacar Kamara (France)
- Arthur Melo (Brazil)
- Yuta Nakayama (Japan)
- Giovani Lo Celso (Argentina)
- Marco Reus (Germany)
- Presnel Kimpembe (France)
