Qatar 2022 is around the corner and many teams are dreaming of winning the biggest tournament in soccer. One of the candidates is Portugal, who has big names among their roster: Cristiano Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Joao Felix and more. However some players will not be in the World Cup, including Renato Sanches.
Besides Renato Sanches, Liverpool’s Diogo Jota will also miss the tournament due to a calf injury. Another notable absence in Portugal’s roster is Gonçalo Guedes, who lost his place due to his state of form.
On the other hand, Portugal will be playing against difficult rivals such as Uruguay, Ghana and South Korea in Group H. If you want to know all the possible results, you can check out our 2022 World Cup simulator.
Why is Renato Sanches missing the Qatar 2022 World Cup?
The exclusion of Sanches was one of the most questionable decisions for fans. The PSG player was one of the best for the team in major tournaments like the Euro 2016 and Euro 2020, which was played in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Portugal coach Fernando Santos was asked about Sanches’ absence and he dodged the question: “It would not be elegant for me to say why one player was chosen over another – not for the player left out and not for the player included.”
However, one plausible explanation could be that Sanches has suffered several injuries recently, especially since his move to Paris. This season, Sanches hasn’t played much: he has only completed over an hour of a match four times, and has not played a full ninety minute match so far.
Fernando Santos chose these midfielders to play in Qatar: João Palhinha (Fulham), Rúben Neves (Wolves), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), João Mário (Benfica), Matheus Nunes (Wolves), Otávio Monteiro (Porto), Vitinha (PSG), William Carvalho (Real Betis).
