One of the best parts of watching the World Cup is that, even for the most knowledgeable supporters, there is always something new to learn. The fact that next summer’s showpiece tournament will feature 16 more nations than usual, thanks to the expansion, means this will be truer than ever.
The likes of Uzbekistan, Jordan, and Cape Verde are all competing in their first-ever World Cup finals, while Haiti have just secured their second appearance since 1974. Meanwhile, Iraq, Suriname, DR Congo, and Northern Ireland all still have a strong chance of qualifying via the play-offs, adding to what is shaping up to be a summer of football like no other.
But for every new team to discover, there’s a big-name player who won’t be making the trip to the USA, Canada, and Mexico after their teams fell short. There have already been plenty of shocks, and we’ve pulled together a list of eleven players who will be sorely missed next summer.
11 Milos Kerkez
Hungary
Kerkez may find himself on the list of the worst Premier League signings of the 2025/26 season so far, with his move from Bournemouth to Liverpool knocking his usually confident self off balance. But with Hungary, he’s a completely different player – one who will no doubt be missed by those who love a modern-day, gallivanting wing-back.
Hungary needed only to avoid defeat against Ireland, but they lost in the 96th minute thanks to a third Troy Parrott goal, waving goodbye to their qualification hopes. Football can be cruel, but at just 22 years old, there will be plenty of opportunities for Kerkez to shine in future editions.
10 Benjamin Sesko
Slovenia
A lot of Slovenia’s attacking output relies on Benjamin Sesko doing much of the heavy lifting. At the back, they have Jan Oblak – one of the best goalkeepers in the world – holding things together (more on him in a bit). But clearly, having just two key players isn’t enough to earn a place at the table among the elite.
With no wins across their six qualification games and Sesko struggling for form, the landlocked European nation looked doomed from the start. It’s something of a double-edged sword for those of a Manchester United persuasion: on one hand, they’d love to see their new striker on the world stage, but on the other, the extra rest could work wonders for their hopes under Ruben Amorim next term. His 17 goal contributions in 33 Bundesliga appearances last season show he’s got star qualities by the shed load.
9 Dusan Vlahovic
Serbia
A modern striker in every sense of the word – tall, strong, fast, and with a knack for finding space in the box even when there doesn’t seem to be any – Dusan Vlahovic, at his best, is a lot like the aforementioned Sesko, also born in an underrated, landlocked European country in Serbia.
Giving up their place in the play-offs to Albania, their Balkan neighbours, probably won’t do much to ease the long-running political tensions that stem from the Kosovo War in the late 1990s. For the neutral, it simply means one less out-and-out striker who would have been looking to feast on goals next summer – another big name who won’t get a chance to show what he can bring to the table.
8 Ademola Lookman
Nigeria
Why Ademola Lookman Chose to Represent Nigeria Instead of England
Nigeria lost their play-off game against DR Congo, with manager Erik Chelle accusing the opposition of practicing voodoo during the penalty shootout. Peculiar, indeed, especially with Ademola Lookman – best known for scoring a hat-trick in the 2023 Europa League final as Atalanta stormed to a 3–0 win over the otherwise invincible Bayer Leverkusen – among the Super Eagles players who would have been expected to do more in securing their return to the World Cup after also missing out in 2022.
Lookman looks set to leave Atalanta after recent clashes with his club manager, having also previously asked to leave before this season. At least next summer he’ll have ample time to hold discussions with potential suitors, albeit at the cost of not seeing the reigning African Player of the Year turning defenders inside out across the pond.
7 Carlos Baleba
Cameroon
Subject to lots of interest from Man United over the summer, Carlos Baleba is typical of what Brighton and Hove Albion have been lifting from their talent production line in recent years. A midfielder with a tireless engine and an undeterrable workhorse mentality, he is the epitome of reliability and results over flair, and he is bound to be a big name in years to come.
Cameroon seemed to be one of the better-equipped African nations to qualify for next summer’s festival of football, but as was the case with Nigeria, DR Congo once again went about their underdog ways and knocked them out in the play-off semi-final.
6 Jan Oblak
Slovenia
Jan Oblak has been instrumental to Atletico Madrid’s success over the years and has looked unbeatable at times. Having won the La Liga Zamora trophy five times, his accolades speak for themselves. During the 2023/24 season, Oblak was vital in Atletico reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League with two huge penalty saves against Inter Milan in the round of 16.
It’s why he is still considered one of the best around, particularly when opposition players know how imposing he can be between the sticks. In a Diego Simeone team built on the very principles of defensive solidity, Oblak was – and still is – the crazy Argentinean’s most reliable asset, but his tournament experience won’t be on display at the World Cup.
5 Serhou Guirassy
Guinea
Last season, Guinean international Serhou Guirassy scored 13 goals and produced five assists in 14 Champions League appearances. Nobody remotely interested in the beautiful game needs telling twice just how remarkable that record is, especially considering he also notched 21 goals in the Bundesliga in his first season at Borussia Dortmund.
It’s the type of return that can help a player put an entire team on his back and win games almost single-handedly. Sadly, however, trying to do that with Guinea – a country of just 15 million people – was a step too far. Four wins, three draws, and three losses is still a respectable effort, but Uganda and Mozambique both bettered it in Group G.
4 Victor Osimhen
Nigeria
That’s right. Nigeria also boasted Victor Osimhen on top of already having Lookman in their team, with Premier League stars Calvin Bassey, Frank Onyeka, and Alex Iwobi perhaps a little unfortunate to miss out on this list – and they still couldn’t manage to reach the World Cup.
Osimhen has scored nearly every type of goal imaginable throughout his Napoli career, leading them to the Serie A title in 2023 with 26 goals in 32 league matches. These days, he’s in Turkey with Galatasaray, but the goals haven’t dried up at all, with his tally of 26 goals in 30 Super Lig games last season comfortably placing him among the best strikers in the world.
3 Dominik Szoboszlai
Hungary
As his nation’s captain, Dominik Szoboszlai put a lot of pressure on himself to be the one who guided Hungary to the World Cup. But there really wasn’t much more he could have done in his efforts to drag them across the pond, with the Liverpool midfielder running almost half-marathon distances every game just to play a role in defence, midfield, and attack.
One of the best Premier League players of the season so far, his long-range strikes, beautiful free-kicks, and relentless running will be missed at the World Cup. And while his absence means he will be fully fit for Liverpool, the fact that he seems tireless means the positives can be overlooked almost entirely.
2 Bryan Mbeumo
Cameroon
Man United’s saviour – the man currently acting like a one-man wrecking machine up top at Old Trafford – Bryan Mbeumo is the second and final Red Devils forward who will get an extended rest next summer after Cameroon’s aforementioned struggles in a group dominated by Uganda and Mozambique.
He managed 20 goals for Brentford last season in the absence of Ivan Toney, and he already looks set to match or better that this time around, having notched five in 11 Premier League outings. Many go to the Theatre of Dreams as if signing a death wish, but Mbeumo has proven he’s far too good for that.
By and large, it was a very good England performance as the Three Lions beat Croatia 4-2 in their opening World Cup fixture. Even so, the Spanish press was not impressed by the efforts of one man.
A first-half brace from Harry Kane saw England take the lead twice, only to be pegged back by a pair of fine goals, first from distance via Martin Baturina and then after a lovely move which saw Petar Musa make it 2-2 just before the break.
There will be some question marks over the defence, with those two goals conceded in the first half, but the second half was much improved as Thomas Tuchel’s men took control and won the game thanks to goals from Jude Bellingham and then Marcus Rashford. Even so, the Spanish media have targeted Anthony Gordon for criticism.
England Starter Upstaged vs Croatia
Kai Pfaffenbach via Reuters
There will naturally be a high interest in Gordon’s performances this summer, as he has just completed a £69m move from Newcastle to Barcelona. Not only that, but he arrives in Spain looking likely to take over from Marcus Rashford, who spent last season on loan with La Blaugrana.
Against Croatia, Tuchel opted to start Gordon ahead of Rashford, but the 25-year-old did not have his most impactful game. Per SofaScore, he managed just two shots, with only one on target, before coming off at 72 minutes.
Rashford, on the other hand, was very lively as he managed to find the back of the net in his 18-minute cameo, while also having as many carries (6), and touching the ball just five times fewer (12 to 17) than the man he replaced. The Manchester United man picked up a much better 7.4 SofaScore rating as well, compared ot Gordon’s lowly 6.3 mark.
Barcelona daily La Vanguardia said: “Tuchel opted for Gordon from the start, but the new Barcelona signing was very subdued. Barca’s new signing covered a lot of ground but to no avail, having very little impact.
“He barely touched the ball and failed to complete either of his two dribbles in the first half. Tuchel’s changes worked and Rashford, in that role he played at Barca, sealed the deal.”
Fellow Barcelona outlet El Periodico struck a similar tone, saying: “Thomas Tuchel wisely substituted Anthony Gordon for Marcus Rashford, reversing the transfer plan Barcelona had devised for the upcoming season.
“Gordon was virtually invisible, barely touching the ball, and Rashford sealed the victory when Croatia threatened to draw.”
On Rashford’s goal, Madrid-based Las Razon said: “It was a goal with a certain intrigue, as Gordon has taken his place in the England starting line-up and his spot at Barcelona.
“But the former Newcastle player was barely involved throughout the match, while the player who spent time on loan at the Camp Nou made his presence felt in a short amount of time. It’s just one game, though; it would be premature to draw conclusions from it.”
Meanwhile, El Mundo said Rashford “showed more promise than Gordon in his limited minutes on the pitch” while Mundo Deportivo said the former Everton man made “little impact.”
The UFC world was left stunned last weekend as Ilia Topuria suffered the very first defeat of his professional MMA career, losing via TKO against Justin Gaethje at the UFC Freedom 250 event in Washington D.C.
The ex-lightweight world champion was pulled out by his corner after the fourth round of the headlining event at the White House as he failed to recover from a devastating left-right combination from the veteran American that left him bloodied in the third.
Gaethje’s explosive display was full of hard-hitting punches plus knees and uppercuts. Topuria’s inability to deal with the constant physical beat down meant an upset occurred and the challenger snatched away the lightweight crown to become a first-time undisputed champion in the UFC.
Topuria, who has also held the belt at featherweight, now has to deal with a fight fallout and feeling which he has never experienced as a professional, which is responding to and coping with a loss.
Ilia Topuria’s Close Friend Opens Up About Fighter’s Reaction
Amber Searls via Imagn Images
In the days since the 31-year-old’s brutal defeat in the American capital, a close friend of his, Pablo Motos, has spoken out to reveal the kind of emotions the fighter is currently experiencing and what his current state of mind is.
Speaking on his ‘El Hormiguero’ chat show, Motos touched on a recent conversation he had with Topuria, stating: “We were talking about something we’re going to do this summer, making jokes, and then he said a phrase I loved.
A lot has been said about Topuria’s health after his war with Justin Gaethje, but a close friend probably knows best, and he’s spoken out.
“He looks at me with his eyes closed and says, ‘Champions, when we fall, we fall hard.’”
Motos then revealed what Topuria’s intentions are in the Octagon and how he wants to go about avenging his world title loss to Gaethje, saying: “They’re already looking toward the future. He was telling me, ‘I’d love to do the rematch in Spain with Gaethje.'”
What Next For Ilia Topuria
Topuria’s desire to jump into a rematch demonstrates that he is keen to rectify his shortcomings against his most recent opponent and reclaim his spot at the top of the lightweight division.
Topuria, who is of Georgian and Spanish descent, has not fought in Spain since the very early days of his professional MMA career, with his last bout in the country coming in a 2016 featherweight title triumph over Jhon Guarin at Mix Fight Events 28 in Valencia.
It remains to be seen what Gaethje intends to do moving forward after achieving his career-long dream of becoming an undisputed UFC champion at 37.
Should Topuria get his wish and get another crack at Gaethje in his home country, it would surely be one of the most anticipated UFC events of recent times.
Arsenal have placed an official bid to sign wonderkid Jeremy Monga from Leicester City, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
The Gunners have been linked with a move for the 16-year-old for some time now, with reports of an offer emerging as early as last month.
Monga, who has been compared to Ousmane Dembele and described as a ‘deadly’ finisher, is expected to leave the Foxes this summer following their relegation to League One, despite having broken into the first-team as a 15-year-old.
And Arsenal have shown the keenest interest in him, with talks progressing over the last few weeks between the Gunners and his representatives over a move to the Emirates Stadium.
Now, according to Romano, Arsenal have lodged an official bid to sign the 16-year-old winger. He tweeted: “Arsenal sent official bid to Leicester City to get Jeremy Monga deal done. 16-year-old winger keen on joining #AFC and deal moving quickly now with optimism to sign #LCFC talent, seen as huge prospect for the future.”
