A whopping 831 players will take part in the World Cup in Qatar.
For some of them it will be their fifth World Cup, for other they will feel the blinding lights of this tournament for the first time.
However, some big names will have to watch the matches from home.
1.Erling Haaland(Manchester City/Norway)
Manchester City’s deadly striker was recently declared the most expensive player in the world according to Transfermarkt, overtaking Kylian Mbappe, as he is now valued at about 148 million pounds.
Unfortunately, for football fans there is not going to be any Haaland in Qatar as Norway failed to qualify finishing third in their qualification group behind the Netherlands and Turkey.
2.Sadio Mane(Liverpool/Senegal)
Possibly the unluckiest player in the world, Sadio Mane will be absent from the World Cup due to an injury.
The Senegalese forward picked up a knee injury in a Bayern Munich match against Werder Bremen on November 8th. Despite that Senegal coach Aliou Cisse called Mane in the final squad and sounded confident that he would be able to play after the first couple of games.
Unfortunately, for him the 30-year-old had to undergo a surgery which ruled him out completely.
3.Mohamed Salah(Liverpool/Egypt)
The Egyptian king of Liverpool will not participate in what could be his second World Cup as Egypt were eliminated in the third round of the African qualifiers.
Salah and the Pharaohs won the home leg in the decisive play-off matchup against Senegal but were taken down on penalties in Dakar.
A great chance missed for Salah, who couldn’t perform to his best in the previous World Cup due to the infamous shoulder injury he picked up in the Champions League a few weeks earlier.
4.Gianluigi Donnarumma(Paris Saint Germain/Italy)
One of the best goalkeepers in the world will have to watch the World Cup from his TV screen.
The PSG goalie had a prime seat when European champions Italy were eliminated by North Macedonia in the first round of play-offs when Aleksandar Trajkovski striked one past Donnarumma in the 92nd minute of the game.
Another World Cup missed for Italy, another missed chance for Donnarumma to make his debut in the tournament.
5.N’Golo Kante(Chelsea/France)
One of the key components of the 2018 French winning squad, Kante has been sidelined due to a serious hamstring injury he picked up in a Chelsea vs Tottenham game in August.
The 31-year-old, who featured in every France match in 2018, has been a big absence for Chelsea and it will be difficult for manager Didier Deschamps to replace him on the pitch.
6.Reece James(Chelsea/England)
The Chelsea fullback will be one of the biggest names not featured in the English squad.
The 23-year-old picked up a knee injury in a Champions League clash against Milan in October and even though he was initially optimistic about making it to the World Cup he couldn’t recover in time. James made his national team debut in 2020 and he was poised to be the team’s first choice right back, if he wasn’t injured.
7.Luiz Diaz(Liverpool/Colombia)
The Colombian winger has been impressive since he joined Liverpool this January but his Colombian side couldn’t even make the play-off spot at the South American qualifiers.
Diaz scored three goals in that campaign but Los Cafeteros were one point behind Peru for the inter-confederation play-off spot.
However, even if Colombia qualified the 25-year-old wouldn’t be able to participate since he injured his knee in early-October and he will return into action after the World Cup.
8.Paul Pogba(Juventus/France)
Another big absence for the French midfield will be Paul Pogba also due to an injury. Pogba tore his meniscus in July while on preseason with Juventus and initially decided not to have a surgery.
Later he changed his mind and had the operation in September but he failed to make a full recovery in time for the World Cup.
The former Manchester United player has had a stellar World Cup career so far winning the Best Young player award in 2014 and scoring in the final in 2018 before lifting the trophy with France.
9.Fikayo Tomori(AC Milan/England)
Probably one of the biggest talking points after Gareth Southgate announced the England squad was about his decision to leave out Fikayo Tomori.
The Milan centre-back has been an essential part of Milan’s starting XI that won the Italian league last season.
After the squad announcement he received support from England legends such as Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand but he will have to cheer for the Three Lions from home.
10.Diogo Jota(Liverpool/Portugal)
Another injury victim is Portugal’s Diogo Jota. The Liverpool forward picked up a calf injury in October in a match against Manchester City.
He had to be taken off the pitch on a stretcher and is looking like he won’t be able to return in action before the beginning of next year.
Jota scored 15 goals last season with Liverpool in the Premier League which triggered a new multi-year contract this summer.
