Liverpool midfielder Thiago Alcantara is likely to miss the World Cup after being left out of the Spain squad yet again.
That’s according to The Athletic. In fact, they go as far as saying that the Liverpool man ‘looks certain’ not to go to Qatar.
Thiago has only recently recovered from a hamstring injury which saw him miss a month of action. But having returned with such aplomb, he would have been hopeful of getting a call-up for Luis Enrique’s squad.
Instead, the 31-year-old has once again been left out in the cold. Despite his mesmeric form for Liverpool, Thiago hasn’t played for Spain since last summer’s European Championships.
Thiago set to miss last chance to light up a major tournament
In some ways, Thiago’s absence from Enrique’s thinking is understandable. Having only just got himself fit again, maybe the Spain boss doesn’t want to increase the player’s workload so soon.
Liverpool’s No.6 was included in Enrique’s final squad of last season, before injury gripped him again.
One scenario could be that the Spain boss has simply come to the conclusion that Thiago can no longer be relied upon. With youngsters like Barcelona duo Pedri and Gavi around, he does have plenty of different options.
But on the other hand, nobody can quite give you what Thiago does. Granted, he’s only played around 120 minutes of football recently, but he’s been brilliant in that time.
If he keeps up his current form over the next month, it’s hard to see how Enrique could ignore him. On-song, Thiago is truly one of the best midfielder players in the world.
His passing alone has been called ‘unbelievable’ by Ian Wright, while his leadership qualities for a tournament squad shouldn’t be understated either.
From a personal point of view, to miss this winter’s tournament would be devastating for Thiago. It’s true that he has never lit up the international scene as he has the club one. He missed Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup through injury. This would likely be his last chance to feature at a major tournament.
But from a Liverpool point of view, it would surely be better news. Thiago is sure to do everything he can to get in the squad over the next month, which is an exciting prospect for the Reds. If he fails to make it, then a winter-break for the maestro would be welcome, too.
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