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Every player dreams of playing at the World Cup and every player dreams of lifting the Jules Rimet trophy. I'd go as far as saying at some point in their life, every boy growing up wanting to become a footballer would have dreamt about it, yet only a very select amount of players are lucky enough to take part in the most famed competition in World football.
In Russia next year what would have once been fantasies will be fulfilled and others will be crushed all in the name of the beautiful game; this is one of the last tournaments with the 32 team format before it extends to 48 teams.
With the playoffs for the 2018 World Cup currently ongoing, let’s take a look at the top five Premier League players who are already guaranteed to miss out on a place at the 21st World Cup and will no doubt be thinking what could have been come June next year when the prestigious competition kicks off.
#5 Andre Ayew
Club: West Ham United | Country: Ghana | Caps: 75 | Goals: 14
The ex-Marseille man will be disappointed Ghana didn’t reach Russia but, when you look at in black and white, they never really got going in this qualifying campaign. One win from five tells its own story as Egypt eventually ran away with the group. It could have been a lot different if Ghana had beaten Congo at home but the game ended in a 1-1 draw. They then thrashed Congo just days later in their own backyard, running away 5-1 winners, but by then it was a case of too little, too late.
More so than that, they failed to beat Uganda home and away, drawing blanks on both occasions and if you change those three draws to wins, Ghana would be going into the last round of games equal on points with Egypt meaning that there would still be a chance of qualification.
Ayew as an individual had a controversial campaign as he pulled out of the win versus Congo despite playing for West Ham just days earlier, citing a knee injury as his reason. He was then left out of the squad for the Uganda game by Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah. It remains to be seen if he will find a way back into the Ghana squad as he been left out for the last remaining qualifier, as well.
#4 Luis Antonio Valencia
Club: Manchester United | Country: Ecuador | Caps: 92 | Goals: 10
The versatile Valencia would have been left devastated after Ecuador missed out on the playoff position and a tie against New Zealand by only six points, in what was probably his last chance to make another appearance at the World Cup Finals. It could’ve been so different if their home form finished as it began, but ultimately losing their last three home qualifiers, conceding seven goals in the process, is what made all the difference.
Valencia, who captains the South American side, would have had a point to prove if they had managed to get to Russia after being sent off on his last appearance at the World Cup Finals, a straight red card against France in Brazil three years ago.
It could be argued that the red card, which came in the early stages of the second half in the final group game, made all the difference to Ecuador’s chances of making the knockout stages of the competition as the game then fizzled out to a goalless draw and it was a game that they needed to win to stand any chance at all of making the last 16.
With the Copa America not until 2019, Valencia, 32, will be hoping he can maintain his fitness levels so he can have another chance of lifting some silverware on the International stage as he has won everything possible in England. The only domestic trophy he is missing from his cabinet is the Champions League and with Man United all but qualified for the knockout stages this season, there’s every possibility he may be ticking that off his ‘to-do list’.
#3 Aaron Ramsey
Club: Arsenal | Country: Wales | Caps: 51 | Goals: 13
After their superb performance at the European Championships last year, Wales were a team tipped for the very top and with a World Cup qualifying group in which their opponents were Serbia, Republic of Ireland, Austria, Georgia and Moldova it should have been relatively routine for Chris Coleman’s side, but, were Wales masters of their own downfall?
Going into the last group game which was at home to Ireland Ramsey and Co. knew that a point would be enough to secure a playoff place, but they choked and fell to a 1-0 defeat against the odds.
The very fact that it came down to that game against Ireland at the Millenium Stadium should have been ringing the alarm bells for Wales, they should’ve had the job wrapped up long before then. You have to really look at the first six games in which they drew five of them, if some of them were wins they would have not of needed the playoff place at all, they would have won the group at a canter.
In particular, the home draws against Georgia and group winners Serbia are results that the Welsh side will be disappointed about, it's all ifs and buts, though.
Ramsey will be disappointed that they didn’t get closer to the first World Cup appearance since 1958, but he will still be around for the World Cup in 2022 and they will no doubt be looking at the Euros in 2020 as a stepping stone yet again. The midfielder scored twice in the qualifying campaign, both outside of Wales, bagging one in Belgrade, Serbia in a 1-1 draw and the other he got in Moldova in a 2-0 away win.
#2 Georginio Wijnaldum
Club: Liverpool | Country: Netherlands | Caps: 42 | Goals: 8
Netherlands are a side who finished 3rd in the 2014 World Cup and runners-up at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa yet they failed to qualify for the European Championships last year and now they’ve failed to qualify for the second major tournament in succession.
That’s not to say they had a straightforward group, because they didn’t, it was one that contained France and Sweden, so it was never going to be a walk in the park, however, you’d think with the amount of quality they have amongst their ranks, they would have at least made the playoffs.
They dropped points four times this campaign, losing twice to group winners France which you can accept (as this France side are on fire), drawing to Sweden in Stockholm which is a credible point and again acceptable. The other match they dropped points was in Sofia away at Bulgaria where they went down to two goals in the first half and had no way back, if they had even got a point there, they would have finished above Sweden and made the playoffs.
Wijnaldum, who started every qualifier, chipped in with one goal throughout the campaign which came against Luxembourg and despite the fact they failed to qualify, he will be pleased with how much he established himself amongst the starting eleven for the Netherlands, something which holds him in good stead in the coming qualifying campaigns.
#1 Alexis Sanchez
Club: Arsenal | Country: Chile | Caps: 119 | Goals: 39
It’s not been a particularly good second half of the year for Sanchez, firstly his transfer away from Arsenal fell through and then Chile failed to qualify for the World Cup and what makes it even worse is that Chile missed out on the playoff place by of goal difference.
It should’ve not come to that, but Chile lost two out of three meaning it all came down to the final group game against Brazil which is not an easiest task on the best of days, let alone when you consider that Brazil were leaps and bounds in front of every other team in the qualifying campaign. Three second-half goals sunk them and with Peru getting a point at home to Colombia it meant that the reigning Copa America champions would not be appearing in Russia next year.
Sanchez did what he could for the side, the seven goals he contributed during the campaign put him clear as Chile’s all-time record goalscorer and with the team now on the lookout for a new Head Coach, you’d think it will be happier times on the horizon for the South American side with the Copa America coming up in 2019.
Chile have won back to back Copa America titles so they’ll be trying to defend the title vehemently, no doubt led by the illustrious Alexis Sanchez. Who knows where he’ll be playing his club football come the next World Cup?
