The world of football is looking forwards to a showcase tournament in a totally new environment when the World Cup 2022 kicks off in Qatar in November.
The best players on the planet will be there as the 32 qualifying nations land on the global stage; but there will be some notable absentees. European Champions Italy are missing out on the World Cup for the second tournament in succession, and that means some of the players who starred at Euro 2020 will be watching the action on the television. Had Roberto Mancini’s men made the final then the World Cup 2022 betting odds would have placed them in the group of potential winners.
The Azzurri are ranked sixth in the world by FIFA; and there are four other big hitters from the top 30 missing, as South American giants Colombia and Chile missed out, as did Sweden and Nigeria. And that means some special talents will be taking a month off; so let’s take a look at five of the best.
Nicolo Barella, Inter Milan; Italy
You could take your pick from the Italian league of big name players who will be absent in Qatar; Lorenzo Insigne, Ciro Immobile and Domenico Berardi, all featured in the SBOTOP Serie A Team of the Year would have graced the global stage. And, had he been in Qatar, Nicolo Barella would surely have featured heavily in the World Cup 2022 highlights too, having impressed so much at the Euros.
Inter Milan’s midfield ace has been in Nations League action, and he scored a brilliant goal in the Azzurri’s 2-1 win over Hungary last week, rifling a right footed shot from outside the penalty area into the top left corner. At 25 years of age he already has 38 international caps, scoring eight goals and he is one of the first names on Roberto Mancini’s team sheet.
Juan Cuadrado, Juventus; Colombia
Colombian centurian Juan Cuadrado is one of the most exciting players in world football on his day, and in his 111 games for his country he has been the danger man most opposing defences fear the most. Now 34 years of age Cuadrado’s trophy cabinet is full; he won the Premier League with Chelsea before moving to Juventus in 2015 and he’s become a fans favourite in Turin, helping the Old Lady to win five Scudettos. Twice a Copa America semi-finalist with Colombia, the last time in 2021, the 2022 World Cup was probably the last chance we’ll have to see Cuadrado on the world stage, but he’ll be featuring in the next Copa… that’s for sure.
Fans in Qatar will miss his electric runs down the right flank, though left sided defenders will be happy they won’t face his technical genius and trickery.
Emil Forsberg, Red Bull Leipzig; Sweden
With 17 goals in 74 internationals Red Bull’s attacking midfielder Emil Forsberg has been Sweden’s most creative talent when Zlatan Ibrahimovic isn’t on the field. And, at 30 years of age, he’ll certainly expect to make Euro 2024 and possibly the next world cup. He’s the only Swede to score four goals in a major finals competition, which he did at Euro 2020 and he was unlucky not to score more, hitting both the post and the crossbar in a Round of 16 loss to Ukraine.
Alexis Sanchez, Inter Milan; Chile
Chile’s most capped player is also the country’s top scorer as Alexis Sanchez has scored 48 goals in 148 appearances. He is often lauded as his nation’s greatest player of all time, leading them to back to back Copa America wins in 2015 and 2016. And he became the most expensive player in Chile’s history when he moved to Barcelona for a fee of 37.5m Euros in 2011. He won six trophies with the Blaugrana before transferring to Arsenal for 35m Euros and he won the Fans PFA Player of the Year award in 2015 while in North London.
A Scudetto winner with Inter Milan, at 33, Sanchez is still a special talent, and he’ll be sadly missed at the World Cup.
Victor Osimhen, Napoli; Nigeria
Despite missing a big chunk of the season with a horrific facial injury, suffered in an accidental clash of heads with Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar, Osimhen still made the top ten scorers in Serie A with 14 goals. And that made him Napoli’s top scorer in a campaign where they were in the hunt for the Scudetto until the last couple of games.
At 6ft 1in Osimhen is a powerful striker as good in the air as on the ground and, at 23, he has a long international career ahead of him. By the time the 2026 World Cup come around Osimhen will be in his prime.
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