Pre-World Cup injuries: the ‘fear’ of missing out on Qatar 

The countdown to this year’s Fifa World Cup has been somewhat different from what we’re used to: Qatar 2022 may be just a few weeks away, but club fixtures are still coming thick and fast ahead of the 20 November kick-off.

As well as the domestic leagues, European competition games also feature in the World Cup run-up, and the “unique winter build-up” means many of the world’s top players will be playing club football “right up until a week before the tournament starts”, said Sporting Life. With fitness now becoming a major concern, the busy schedule has created a worry for some players as they could miss out on Qatar through injury.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi, who at 35-years-old will play in his last World Cup, admitted that he is “more afraid” after seeing team-mates Paulo Dybala and Angel Di Maria pick up injuries in recent weeks. “Injuries are a worry,” the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner told DirecTV Sports. “This is a different World Cup which is played at a different time of the year to previous tournaments and it’s so imminent any little thing that happens to you can force you out.”

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A cramped schedule

At the weekend Manchester United defender Raphaël Varane left the field in tears after going off injured against Chelsea. A World Cup winner with France in 2018, the 29-year-old fell awkwardly and was replaced on 60 minutes at Stamford Bridge. The extent of his injury has yet to be confirmed, but the defender is facing a race against time to be fit for the defending world champions.

Varane is the latest big name who has suffered an injury pre-World Cup. Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, Varane’s French team-mate, is out, as is Liverpool’s Portugal forward Diogo Jota.

This is what happens when you “plonk a World Cup in the middle of a season”, said James Sharpe in The Mail On Sunday. The tournament is coming at a time in the calendar when “injuries usually spike because of a cramped schedule”, and “shove in even more matches to make up for lost time”.

Big decisions for team bosses

While not all publicly revealed, the 32 qualified nations have finalised their provisional squads of up to 55 players. They must then trim that number to 26 and submit their final squad list by 13 November – seven days before the opening game in Qatar. Fifa will then confirm all squads on 14 November.

For any players injured between now and then, “managers are left with quite a decision”, said Chuck Booth on CBS Sports. The Qatar World Cup presents “a host of great unknowns” and the injury issue is one that team bosses “have to deal with on the fly”. Managers will need to “determine the risk” and weigh up the “importance of the injured player” with the depth in their squad.

Pep will ‘smell’ the fear

Chelsea manager Graham Potter admitted that some players will “subconsciously” have concerns in the back of their minds. “If we don’t think they are human beings and don’t think about that on some level then I think we’re being a bit naïve,” he said. Chelsea skipper Cesar Azpilicueta is also concerned about the risk of burnout, the London Evening Standard reported. As players, “you want to go to the World Cup”, said the Spanish defender. “The truth is that we are fighting a lot for the player welfare because the schedule is crazy. Sometimes we have to consider everything.”

There is, however, one Premier League manager who is “paying no attention to the upcoming tournament”, said Joe Bray in the Manchester Evening News. Pep Guardiola, boss of Manchester City, has warned that if any player is focussing on their international chances more than the club’s remaining fixtures before the World Cup, they will not feature for the defending champions.

“He will not play if I smell this,” Guardiola said of any player holding back to avoid injury in the coming weeks. “I’m really good at smelling this. Tactics not, but smelling I’m really good.”