Five top players in danger of missing the 2026 World Cup | OneFootball

The World Cup is football’s biggest stage but as the qualification phase nears completion, there is some elite talent at risk of missing out.

We’ve profiled five top players who are at real risk of missing the tournament.

The best players at risk of missing the 2026 World Cup

Alexander Isak – Sweden

October’s international break was nothing short of a nightmare for Sweden. Successive home defeats to Switzerland and Kosovo have left the nation’s World Cup dream in tatters, with Sweden trailing second-placed Kosovo by six points with just two games to go.

The Scandinavians failed to score in both defeats, despite a frontline that moved clubs for around £180m in the summer.

Alexander Isak’s missed pre-season, as he engineered a transfer to Liverpool, could have played its part in Sweden’s woes, with the 26-year-old unable to influence qualifiers in September or October. British football’s most expensive ever signing might spend next summer watching from afar.

Viktor Gyokeres – Sweden

Isak’s international teammate, Gyokeres, also drew blanks in both fixtures during October’s international break. The 27-year-old was the leading scorer in the 2024/25 Nations League and won The Gerd Müller Trophy at the Ballon d’Or awards, presented to the striker with the most goals for club and country during the season.

Sweden, however, have failed to score in three straight qualifiers and head coach Jon Dahl Tomasson has been fired as a result. Shortly before his dismissal, Tomasson pinned blame on his big name forwards.

“It’s not good enough and it’s a terrible result (defeat to Kosovo). It really hurts, we forgot how to score goals and I don’t know why.”

Jan Oblak – Slovenia

Jan Oblak is yet to play at a World Cup and the goalkeeper’s wait may continue in 2026. Slovenia sit third in Group B, four points behind Kosovo in the play-off place with two games to go.

Oblak has been one of Europe’s best goalkeepers for over a decade, winning La Liga’s Zamora Trophy on a record six occasions. However, time is running out for the 32-year-old to play in a World Cup, with a Slovenia side that has not qualified for the tournament since 2010.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – Georgia

Georgia captured the imagination during their tournament at Euro 2024, as the debutants impressed to reach the Round of 16. A talented generation is led by the brilliant Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, whose reputation as one of Europe’s best wide players has only enhanced since a move to Paris Saint-Germain in January.

However, the fleet-footed Kvaratskhelia looks unlikely to take his talent to the US, Canada and Mexico next summer, with Georgia six points behind second-placed Turkey in Group E, with a six-goal goal difference swing required.

The tournament will be a poorer place without the PSG superstar.

Dusan Vlahovic – Serbia

Serbia continue to flatter to deceive on the international stage despite a depth of talent that suggests better performances should be expected. A dismal 5-0 home defeat to England in September was a low ebb, before another defeat to Albania this month left their World Cup involvement in jeopardy.

Vlahovic was on target in a much-needed 3-1 win in Andorra, leaving Serbia a point behind Albania heading into the penultimate fixtures. A squad that boasts the goal threat of the Juventus forward and Aleksandar Mitrovic should be performing at a higher level.

Read – The biggest nations at risk of missing the 2026 FIFA World Cup

See more – Premier League players who shone in the international break

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