Stars of Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, and a former Manchester United forward are among those who will be gutted to miss out this summer.
In a fortnight Euro 2012 will be underway, and it will be a chance for players to enhance and solidify their reputations, as well as lifting the coveted trophy.
Sadly a number of Europe’s top players will miss out. Here are 10 who can count themselves unfortunate, either through injury or simply being overlooked.
David Villa – Spain
David Villa would have been a shoe-in for a starting place for Spain. His broken leg, sustained in the World Club Cup in Japan, was costly for Barcelona who failed to win La Liga or the Champions League. Who knows if he would have made the difference against Chelsea? Villa is a guaranteed source of goals, and Spain’s challenge is finding a replacement to feast on the wealth of creativity their midfield can provide. More on that later…
Kyle Walker – England
England’s Young Player of the Year, Kyle Walker, suffered a late injury to rule him out of the tournament. He had been expected to start in the right-back spot after an excellent season for Spurs, and England will now have to revert to using Glen Johnson in the position. Micah Richards is another who will be disappointed to be overlooked by Roy Hodgson.
John Guidetti – Sweden
Ever since Pele in 1958, international tournaments have become stages for young players to make their name. Michael Owen was proof of this in 1998, while Thomas Muller lifted the Golden Boot in 2010. Sweden have a young dynamo of their own in striker John Guidetti, a Manchester City striker who has been tearing it up in Holland for loan club Feyenoord. Sweden’s opponents, including England, have been let off the hook after a thigh problem suffered by Guidetti, which has prevented him from playing since April, ruled him out of the tournament.
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Giuseppe Rossi – Italy
Italian striker Giuseppe Rossi has had the year from hell. His knee injury in pre-season ruled him out of the campaign, and his other knee gave way just weeks ago, putting him out of action until 2013. Rossi was surprisingly not included in the Azzurri’s World Cup squad two years ago, and Euro 2012 is another tournament to pass him by.
Roberto Soldado – Spain
Back onto the topic of Spain’s strikers, Roberto Soldado is incredibly unlucky to miss out. A late season flourish from Fernando Torres has seen the man who grabbed Spain’s Euro 2008 winner included, with Soldado left out, while Fernando Llorente will likely start. Valencia striker Soldado had scored 29 goals this season in contrast to Torres’ 11 strikes.
Bacary Sagna – France
Frenchman Bacary Sagna is the second right-back from North London who will miss out. The Arsenal star suffered a broken leg against Norwich with two games to go until the end of the season. Lille right-back Mathieu Debuchy is in line to replace him.
Manuel Fernandes – Portugal
There were few surprises in Portugal’s squad, their star players are fit and healthy, but Manuel Fernandes being dropped was a notable omission. He has had a good season with Besiktas, scoring eight goals, but playing in the Turkish league seems to have counted against him, despite playing a part and scoring in qualifiers.
Dominico Criscito – Italy
Italy’s first choice left-back has the most bizarre reason of all for missing the tournament, and it is not an easy one for football to hear. The latest match-fixing scandal in Italy has seen him implicated, although he strenuously denies allegations. Together with coach Cesare Prandelli, the decision was made for him to pull out of the squad, to focus on clearing his name. It is a blow for the Zenit St Petersburg defender, formerly of Genoa, who was looking forward to his first major tournament.
Jack Wilshere – England
England’s great hope, midfielder Jack Wilshere has not kicked a ball for Arsenal this season. England’s midfield in their friendly win over Norway was majorly lacking in invention, and a fully fit Wilshere would have been a stark improvement. He will be gutted to miss out on this tournament after making his international breakthrough last year, but like Walker, he is young and has plenty of opportunities ahead of him.
Carlos Puyol – Spain
Carlos Puyol will be a great loss to Spain, one they may not feel early on, but could do when the knock out stages arrive. The man who scored the winner in the World Cup semi-final over Germany has suffered a knee injury to rule him out of the tournament, and at 34, it could signal the end of his international career on the grand stage, even though he will still wish to play a part in 2014.
Which of these 10 will be the biggest loss to their countries?
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