Bielsa said he didn’t spoke to Muslera at halftime, and that it was the goalkeeper himself the one that asked to be subbed off. “I didn’t make it [the decision of substituting the GK], that’s a decision Muslera himself made,” Bielsa revealed. However, Bielsa also explained why he subbed off Fede Valverde.

Hence, this cleared the air. The goalkeeper himself didn’t see fit continuing playing after a very bad half of soccer action in a must-win game vs. Spain. Despite the change, Uruguay still couldn’t right the ship and were eliminated from the 2026 World Cup.

Muslera was directly involved in Uruguay’s dismay

Uruguay conceded four goals in the 2026 World Cup, Muslera had a mistake in every single one of those actions. While the fact that Uruguay are eliminated from the tournament is not purely on Muslera, he did have a nightmare of a tournament.

And this is not new. Muslera also had costly howlers in previous editions of World Cups. For instance, in Uruguay’s quarterfinals match vs. France in Russia 2018, a weak, long-distance shot from Antoine Griezmann was grossly mishandled by Muslera, which made France had an unreachable two-goal lead in the game.

In South Africa 2010’s match for third place, Bastian Schweinsteiger struck a long-range free-kick that Muslera spilled, allowing Thomas Muller to pounce and score the rebound. Muslera has been a constant presence for Uruguay, but his mistakes come in crucial moments against the Charruas‘ best interest.

Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa is not one to sugarcoat things, and after Muslera’s huge mistake in Spain’s goal, coupled with another dubious plays, he opted to trust Sergio Rochet in goal for the second half of a must-win game.

This is likely the end of Muslera‘s international career. Given that the goalkeeper is 40 years old, one must wonder if he will ever get a chance at redemption with his country’s national team.

Rochet was expected to be Uruguay’s starting GK in 2026 World Cup

Rochet played most of the qualifiers and even some friendlies ahead of this tournament. Hence, it was shocking to see Muslera being picked as GK1 for the 2026 World Cup. However, Muslera’s mistakes stem back to the other two games of the group stage, so for Bielsa, enough was enough, and Rochet is now back in the field.

This might prove to be too little to late, as Muslera’s mistakes have been very damaging for Uruguay. Against Cape Verde, Muslera also missed quite heavily a ball that ended up with Cape Verde’s equalizer.

Rochet is also a very experienced goalkeeper

Rochet is now on goal but he is not a spring chicken by any means. He is 33 years old. In fact, Rochet has 35 international caps for Uruguay already, making this his 36th appearance.

Diego Alonso, who received a lot of praise for righting the ship on time in the final rounds of the South American qualifiers, is now under pressure to get his team into the next round.

Therefore, the manager has made big changes to face Ghana, as his team needs to claim all three points to qualify for the next round.Fernando Muslera, however, remains on the bench.

Why is Fernando Muslera not starting for Uruguay against Ghana

Fernando Muslera is not starting for Uruguay against Ghanabecause Alonso continues to choose Sergio Rochet over him. Not only has the Nacional goalkeeperbeen La Celeste’s first choice since Alonso took over, but he’s also seven years younger than Muslera (36).

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Muslera, who along with other Uruguayan veterans was called up for a fourth FIFA World Cup, is sitting on the bench while Sergio Rochet puts on the gloves for Diego Alonso‘s side.

Another notable absence in the starting lineup is Edinson Cavani, with Darwin Nuñez and Facundo Pellistri joining Luis Suarez up front. Here, let’s take a look at why Muslera is not the starting goalkeeper.

Why is Fernando Muslera not Uruguay’s starting goalkeeper?

Fernando Muslera is not starting for Uruguay against South Korea because head coach Diego Alonso preferredSergio Rochet over him. While Muslera was the starter during much ofOscar Washington Tabarez‘s tenure, when Alonso took over, he was still recovering from a knee injury sustained in December 2021.

Uruguay ended up qualifying to Qatar with Rochet between the sticks, so Alonso decided to keep the Nacional man in the lineup.Using this World Cup Predictor, you can see every potential outcome of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Enjoy all the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup matches from the United States through FuboTV. Click here and to take advantage of their 7-day free trial offer.

Needless to say, it won’t be an easy job for Diego Alonso to fill in the Maestro‘s shoes. The former Inter Miami manager not only faces the challenge of getting his home country back on track, but he also had to make a big decision at the time of submitting the roster.

Iconic goalkeeper Fernando Muslera has been the dependable goalkeeper Uruguay have relied on for years but he won’t be available for the upcoming matches – which could be crucial for their World Cup aspirations. But why is he not playing?

The reason why Fernando Muslera is not playing for Uruguay

Fernando Muslera won’t play for Uruguay during the January-February fixtures because he is still recovering from a seriousinjury sustained during a Galatasaray game in December 2021.

Following a scary collision with teammate Christian Luyindama in a defeat toDemir Grup Sivasspor in the Turkish league, Muslera left the field on stretchers. Shortly after, it was revealed thathe suffereda high-grade medial collateral ligament (MCL) tear in his left knee and aa stretched anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

While he continues working on his recovery process, this is an opportunityfor Alonso to try and find a dependable replacement for the veteran goalkeeper. For this fixture, he called upSebastián Sosa, Martín Campaña, Guillermo De Amores, and Sergio Rochet.