5 superstars who are at risk of missing the 2022 World Cup because of injury

about 2 years ago

The 2022 FIFA World Cup is just a little over four weeks away now. It is every footballer's dream to represent their country at the World Cup. Players try to it their all as teams battle in the Qualifiers to book a berth at football's showpiece event.

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Several top stars won't feature at the 2022 FIFA World Cup as their respective national teams failed to secure qualification to the tournament. Players like Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah, Marco Verratti, David Alaba and Luis Diaz are some of the high-profile stars who will be missing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Additionally, there are also some unfortunate players who might miss the 2022 FIFA World Cup due to injury. Without further ado, let's take a look at five superstars who are at risk of missing the 2022 FIFA World Cup because of injury.

#5 N'Golo Kante (Chelsea/France)

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Chelsea and France midfielder N'Golo Kante has been sidelined since August 14 with a hamstring injury. The 31-year-old played a pivotal role in France's triumphant run at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. However, he has struggled with niggling injury problems in recent years.

Kante was expected to return to the fray this week but suffered a setback in training. The extent of his injury is not yet known as per Chelsea boss Graham Potter's admission. He said:

“N’Golo we’re just waiting on, he had a reaction in training. So we’re just waiting for the news of that.

“It’s not ideal, disappointing for him and us, but we have to wait and see the extent of it, and go from there.”

#4 Paulo Dybala (AS Roma/Argentina)

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Paulo Dybala has been in excellent form for AS Roma in the 2022-23 season. He has scored seven goals and provided two assists in 11 appearances across all competitions for AS Roma so far this term.

Dybala picked up an injury in Roma's win over Lecce this past weekend and was forced off. Scans revealed that the Argentine midfielder had injured one of his quadricep muscles. Sky Sports (via Fooball Italia) claim that he will miss out on action for four to six weeks.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup kicks off in about five weeks time and Dybala is in a race against time to regain fitness.

#3 Angel Di Maria (Juventus/Argentina)

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Angel Di Maria has been one of Argentina's most important players in the last decade. The Juventus forward is, however, a doubt for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after picking up a muscular strain on his right thigh.

He was chasing a pass during Juventus' 2-0 loss to Maccabi Haifa when hepulled up holding his right thigh. Di Maria immediately knew something had gone wrong and looked at the bench to signal something had gone wrong.

The 34-year-old is set to undergo a round of sets to determine the extent of his injury, according to Football Italia.

#2 Reece James (Chelsea/England)

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Gareth Southgate is a huge fan of his right-backs. He included four right-backs in England's squad for Euro 2020, namely Kyle Walker, Reece James, Kieran Trippier and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Unfortunately for Southgate, he is sweating on the fitness of a couple of them ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Chelsea right-back Reece James sustained a knee injury during the Blues' 2-0 win against AC Milan in the UEFA Champions League in midweek.

Speaking to the press after the game, Chelsea boss Graham Potter chose to be optimistic about James' chances of recovering early from his injury. Potter said:
"Reece, we're hoping he'll be okay. [We'll need] 24-48 hours because it's too early to tell you anything more than that."

#1 Paul Pogba (Juventus/France)

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Paul Pogba picked up a meniscus injury in pre-season during Juventus' tour of the USA. He is yet to play a minute for the Bianconeri since making a sensational return to the club as a free agent this summer.

Pogba could return before the World Cup but there's a very good chance that his lack of match fitness could hamper his chances of going to the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In an interview with Rai Sport (via Calciomercato), Deschamps said:

“Paul’s recovery program is going well, but as of today, it’s difficult to give a precise date for the return.

“I will have to decide, but for the moment I cannot confirm whether he’ll be ready or not.

“The lone condition for Paul to be summoned is that he recovers. But then, the fact that he hasn’t played for a while could be a problem. So I hope he can play with Juventus as much as possible before the World Cup."