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The 2022 FIFA World Cup quarter-finals will begin on Friday (9 December) and teams will be looking to put their best foot forward in upcoming matchups. They cannot afford to rest on their laurels as every mistake they make could have huge ramifications.
As such, the pressure on managers is massive right now and they need to be spot on with their team selections. There is little room for trial and error at this point in the tournament and teams will rely on their best performers so far to continue producing the goods for them.
But there are several players at the 2022 FIFA World Cup who have not been afforded an appropriate amount of playing time despite having proved themselves. Without further ado, let's take a look at five players who deserve more playing time.
#5 Lisandro Martinez (Argentina)
It's a bit baffling as to why Lionel Scaloni continues to persist with the centre-back pairing of Nicolas Otamendi and Cristian Romero. While Otamendi has been excellent, Romero has looked shaky at the back.
The Tottenham Hotspur centre-back has looked vulnerable in defensive transitions and attackers have found a lot of joy in their duels with him. Meanwhile, Lisandro Martinez has impressed whenever he's been called up on.
Martinez has made just three appearances at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and has started only one game so far. He is way more proficient on the ball than Romero and is also a much better tackler than him. The Manchester United centre-back deserves more playing time than he has got so far in Qatar.
#4 Diogo Dalot (Portugal)
It'd be difficult for any coach to look past Joao Cancelo as a starter. But Fernando Santos has had to make that decision at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and it has paid off so far. While Cancelo has done a decent job in the tournament, his deputy Diogo Dalot has simply been better.
The Manchester United right-back has been excellent on both sides of the pitch and has provided two assists in two appearances so far. He should be Portugal's first-choice right-back going forward as such is the impact he has had in the limited playing time he has been given.
#3 Eduardo Camavinga (France)
Eduardo Camavinga was expected to play an extensive role for France at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. But that has not been the case so far and he has made just one appearance so far. The midfielder played out of position at left-back in the game against Tunisia but still managed to impress.
He won 18 duels, made six clearances, won five fouls and made three interceptions in that game. Camavinga ranked the highest among all French players for the aforementioned stats. The 18 duels he won against Tunisia is the most by a Frenchman in a single World Cup game since data collection began in 1966.
Camavinga definitely deserves more playing time and should at least be featuring as a substitute. He has made just a single appearance so far at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
#2 Goncalo Ramos (Portugal)
Cristiano Ronaldo has proven to be ineffective for Portugal in attack at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The signs have been there and football fans who followed him at Manchester United in the first half of the 2022-23 season will be aware of his decline.
Portugal play with way too much attacking swagger when Ronaldo's not involved and that's a fact. His replacement Goncalo Ramos scored a sensational hat-trick in his first start at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in the Round of 16 against Switzerland.
Ramos had played just 10 minutes in the tournament prior to being named in the starting XI for the game against the Swiss. After his fine performance in the Round of 16, he needs to be afforded more playing time and should start against Morocco in the quarter-finals.
#1 Marcus Rashford (England)
England are well stacked in the attacking department. As such, it has been difficult for top players to even get a look in. Marcus Rashford is chief among such players and has started only one of England's four matches so far.
He has come off the bench in three games but has scored three goals in the tournament. Rashford's directness, exquisite dribbling skills and ability to find the back of the net makes him a great attacking outlet. However, Southgate has preferred other players to him.
He has played just 132 minutes so far at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and definitely deserves more playing time.
