As the highly anticipated Euro 2024 tournament draws nearer, the excitement is dampened by the news of several high-profile players being forced to miss the event due to injuries. Here are some of the players on that list.
1. Gavi (Spain)
Spain’s midfield dynamo, Gavi is a notable absentee. The Barcelona prodigy suffered a devastating ACL injury in November 2023 while on international duty, and his recovery timeline rules him out of the tournament.
Spain’s coach, Luis de la Fuente, was criticized by Barcelona for the circumstances surrounding Gavi’s injury. Barca blamed de la Fuente for playing Gavi in what they termed as a “useless” qualifier.
Gavi got injured in Spain’s final game of the EURO qualifiers against Georgia. Spain faced the EURO debutants having already qualified. Gavi started the match, but the midfielder was forced off after just 26 minutes of the encounter.
2. Serge Gnabry (Germany)
One of the biggest blows is the absence of Germany’s Serge Gnabry, the Bayern Munich star whose pace and scoring prowess will be sorely missed by the host nation.
Gnabry suffered a minor hamstring injury, and was forced off in the 70th minute of Bayern’s Champions League quarter-final first leg away to Arsenal towards the end of the season,
Making matters worse, he later suffered a muscle tear in the Champions League semifinal against Real Madrid, leaving him out until next season, dashing his dreams of competing in front of his home supporters.
3.David Alaba (Austria)
Austria’s captain, David Alaba, is another high-profile name on the sidelines. The versatile Real Madrid defender tore his ACL in December 2023, marking the third injury of the kind at the Spanish club in the just concluded season.
Alaba’s leadership and defensive skills will be missed as Austria look to make an impact on the tournament.
4. Lucas Hernandez (France)
The versatile defender was Didier Deschamps’ preferred choice at left-back, but his international career has been plagued by injuries. After rupturing the ACL in his right leg during the 2022 World Cup, Hernandez fought his way back onto the pitch, only to suffer the same devastating injury to his left knee while playing for PSG.
The 28-year-old has already undergone surgery and is unlikely to play again until 2025. This automatically rules him out of this year’s EURO, which is a harsh blow to France’s defensive options.
5. Jurrien Timber (Netherlands)
The Netherlands have also been hit hard, with Jurrien Timber’s injury-plagued campaign ruling him out of contention. The Arsenal defender suffered an ACL injury on his Premier League debut, dashing his hopes of representing his country in the EURO qualifiers.
Although he recovered towards the end of the season and played a couple of games with the Arsenal Academy and the Gunners’ final game against Everton, Timber was deemed unfit by Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman, and not called for national duty for the euros.
6. Wesley Fofana (France)
The 23-year-old defender’s quality is undeniable, but his injury history has been a recurring issue. He suffered an ACL injury just after joining Chelsea, an injury that has definitively ruled him out of the Euros, further complicating France’s defensive preparations.
7. Thibaut Courtois (Belgium)
Belgium will be without their star goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, for the Euros. However, this absence is not due to injury, but rather a bitter fallout with national team coach Domenico Tedesco.
Despite recovering from an ACL injury, Courtois’ decision to step away from national duty leaves Belgium without their first-choice goalkeeper a significant loss for the team.
8. Destiny Udogie (Italy)
The promising Tottenham left-back, will also miss the tournament after undergoing surgery on his quadriceps last month.
Other notable absentees at EURO 2024 include Reece James (England), Christopher Nkunku (France), Ivan Perisic (Croatia), Paul Pogba (France), Raheem Sterling (England), Sandro Tonali (Italy) and Ben White (England).
