5 WWE Superstars who John Cena shouldn't face at WrestleMania 36

It was announced that John Cena will be returning to SmackDown after WWE Super ShowDown, which will mark his return to WWE TV after over 6 months and his return to SmackDown after over a year away.

John Cena has been increasingly absent from WWE programming and since absence makes the heart grow fonder, he's long lost his "polarizing" status and has become a beloved fan-favorite. Moreover, Cena's impact on WWE television has declined and he has been aware of the inevitable transition as well, famously saying that his time was up and someone else's time is "now".

His last appearance was at WrestleMania 35 when he returned as the Doctor of Thuganomics to confront Elias, and the belief is that his upcoming return could have major WrestleMania implications. Having Cena at WrestleMania 35 would be a massive boost to the card and a massive boost to the superstar facing him.

However, there are a few superstars WWE should avoid making him face, and here are five of them:

#5 Goldberg

Goldberg is a big name who John Cena has never crossed paths with. It's not particularly surprising given that Goldberg's departure in WWE was the time when Cena began to rise to the top, while his return run from 2016 has seen him face other opponents such as Brock Lesnar, Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler, and The Undertaker.

Goldberg appears to be on the kind of deal where he has appearances at events in Saudi Arabia and it works out well since it's a big payday and it's a stage where legends are more welcome than they normally are these days.

John Cena vs Goldberg is not an exciting match-up in 2020 and we hope that there are no plans for it, even if it's just to have a "dream match".

#4 Roman Reigns

We're aware that Roman Reigns and John Cena are unlikely to cross paths. Their "dream" match happened in the summer of 2017 and it saw a rather painful build as John Cena verbally decimated Roman Reigns on the mic before putting him over in an underwhelming "passing of the torch" match.

If anything, that further proved that Reigns was simply not meant to be "The Guy" at the time and while reactions have been far more favorable towards him now, a feud against Cena may be a few steps back for him.

It would be an appropriate match at an appropriate stage, but since WWE already pulled the trigger on this rivalry, it doesn't make much sense to run it back. Moreover, Roman Reigns is rumored to be challenging "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 36 and that's a far better spot for him to have in 2020 than one against Cena.

There are simply other superstars who would benefit far more from a match with John Cena at WrestleMania 36.

#3 AJ Styles

AJ Styles and John Cena are two superstars who have natural chemistry in the ring and can put on an all-time classic time and again. They've faced each other on multiple occasions - most famously in their trilogy of bouts at Money in the Bank 2016, SummerSlam 2016, and Royal Rumble 2017, the latter of which saw John Cena win his 16th World Championship.

We understand that Styles is on the RAW brand but we must remember that the "Wild Card" rule still applies to Cena, especially since he hardly appears to begin with. He's transcended both brands and ultimately, his assignment on a brand post-2016 has been more about putting over other superstars - with AJ Styles being the biggest name on that list.

However, the time has passed for them to cross paths again. With Cena's appearances being more limited, perhaps it should be utilized on a new feud with a superstar he hasn't faced before.

There's no denying that they would have a show-stealer at WrestleMania, but it's not the time and place.

#2 The Undertaker

How we wish this encounter would have happened at WrestleMania 32. From the sign of things, the dream bout was going to take place at WrestleMania 32 in a marquee match. The Undertaker had racked up an incredible list of names at the Grandest Stage of Them All and it was clear that one major name was missing - John Cena.

Unfortunately, things changed after Cena suffered a major injury that would keep him out until the midpoint of 2016. As a result, The Undertaker faced Shane McMahon. The following year would have been the right time as well, but WWE chose to have Cena wrestle a mixed tag team match so he could have the "WrestleMania moment" of proposing to Nikki Bella (which all seems to have big one big waste, in retrospect).

They finally faced off at WrestleMania 34 but it lasted all but 165 seconds. The entire build to the match itself was just Cena pleading for a match against The Undertaker to have a spot at WrestleMania.

While it would make storyline sense to run it back again, WWE shouldn't.

#1 Lars Sullivan

While we've repeatedly mentioned that John Cena's limited appearances should be used to face fresher opponents, one of the few exceptions to that rule is Lars Sullivan. Cena was supposed to face Sullivan at WrestleMania 35, with the build reportedly planned for the start of 2019. However, Sullivan's anxiety attack kicked in and his debut was delayed until after WrestleMania 35.

Last year would have been the perfect time to introduce him but a lot has happened since then. Not long after debuting, Sullivan would suffer a major knee injury that would keep him out an estimated 6-9 months. What made things worse at the end of 2019 was new information released revealing Sullivan's previously-unknown past in adult films.

While we don't wish to shame him for that or hold it against him, the reality is that the circumstances won't be favorable for him once he returns. Unless WWE pulls off a miracle, he's likely going to lose his momentum and Cena shouldn't be putting over someone whose push could be at risk.