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The countdown to the 2022 World Cup competition is almost over and we are on the doorstep of the prestigious event.
Qatar will host this year's edition of the World Cup which will commence on 20 November and end on 18 December 2022.
However, several players who have underperformed in their respective clubs in the ongoing 2022-23 campaign were selected in their national team squads for the World Cup.
As such, this article will look at four players that were lucky to be selected in their nation’s squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
#1 Harry Maguire (England)
The Englishman lost his place in Manchester United's starting XI to Lisandro Martinez at the start of the season. He is a player who is lucky to be selected in England's World Cup squad.
Maguire has only registered nine appearances in 21 games across all competitions for Manchester United this season.
The 29-year-old's lack of playing time could be attributed to an injury that kept him on the sidelines for several weeks.
However, it's questionable why he was selected ahead of the in-form Fikayo Tomori, who has so far performed better than him this season.
Maguire's World Cup selection is, however, an opportunity for him to redeem himself and it will be interesting to see if he can do that.
#2 Alvaro Morata (Spain)
The Atletico Madrid forward is Spain’s main striker going into the competition and his performances this season have been quite fair.
Morata has netted five goals and has registered one assist in 19 appearances across all competitions this season. Borja Iglesias, on the other hand, has netted eight goals and registered three assists in 17 appearances across all competitions so far.
If you look at both players' performances this season in La Liga and other European competitions, it will be noticed that Iglesias deserves to be selected ahead of Morata.
However, Morata's selection is an opportunity for him to silence his critics and it will be interesting to see if he can do that.
#3 Richarlison (Brazil)
The Brazilian has not performed as expected this season and his inclusion in Brazil's World Cup squad is questionable.
Richarlison has only netted two goals and registered two assists in 15 appearances so far. Whereas his attacking competitor Roberto Firmino has netted nine goals and has registered four assists in 20 appearances this season.
The 25-year-old is lucky to be in Brazil's World Cup squad because Firmino has performed better than him this season. But it is also an opportunity for him to right his wrongs.
#4 Jack Grealish (England)
The Englishman's performances have fallen below expectations at Manchester City this season.
Grealish has only netted one goal in 15 appearances across all competitions so far. Compared to this, Harvey Barnes has netted six goals and has registered one assist in 15 appearances this season.
Grealish's selection is questionable because there are several English attackers like Barnes and Ivan Toney that have performed better than him. However, like others on this list, his selection does give him an opportunity to prove the faith of selectors right.
