For many players, the 2022 World Cup will be a highly significant competition. Some people will be attending the World Cup for the first time, while others are in their final encounter. Some of the athletes who will compete in the World Cup for the first time have previously been discussed presently this year. We, therefore, want to look at several players this time around for whom Qatar would be their final match.
The following nine national football team players greats will compete in their final World Cup in 2022.
Cristiano Ronaldo
CR7 will be 38 in 3 months, and as much as we hate to admit it, he no longer looks as
good as he used to about a decade ago. So, you get the feeling that, after Qatar, he might just hang up his international boots. By the time the next tournament comes around, Ronaldo will be 41. And while we don’t doubt that he might still be playing professionally by then, it’s
a little unlikely that he’ll be fit and willing to go for another World Cup tournament.
So, take in every bit of CR7 in Qatar. After this year’s edition, you may never see him play a World Cup game.
Neymar Jr.
Now, while CR7’s World Cup future is based on speculation, Neymar’s is pretty certain.
The 30-year-old Brazilian has confirmed that the 2022 World Cup will be his last, as he
doesn’t think he has the mental capacity to handle another tournament. So, even though he’ll be a fair age of 34 when the next tournament comes to his neighboring north America, he won’t be participating.
Angel Di Maria
Di Maria is another person who has confirmed that he will not be going to another World Cup after Qatar. As a matter of fact, he has said that he will be retiring from international football once the World Cup is over in December. So, Qatar will be the last time we see Di Maria in an Argentina shirt. Will he be able to score another final winner just like he did last year in the Copa America to bow out in style? We’ll just have to wait to find out.
Thomas Muller
Muller has had an amazing career, and he is actually a pretty underrated player, But in his mid-30s, he already looks like he’s in the twilight of his career. He is no longer a regular in the Bayern first team, and he also doesn’t start many games for Germany either. He’s very likely to be included in Flick’s squad, though, because of his experience and the edge he gives Germany, but this is most probably going to be the last World Cup for the 2010 Golden Boot winner.
Luka Modric
Modric really overachieved when he led his Croatian teammates to the World Cup final
last time out. And still going on to win an extra Champions League as a major player for Real Madrid after then is nothing short of incredible. But no matter how incredible he has proven to be as a player, the guy is still human. The Ballon d’Or winner is 37 now, and this will surely be his last World Cup outing. He’ll probably even just retire from international football after this.
Who knows?
Luis Suarez
Suarez is already at the twilight of what has been an incredible career. He is no doubt one of the greatest strikers of his generation and has been a very entertaining Character at the World Cup. He had that bite in 2014 and that handball in the quarter-final in 2010. So, when he bows out after this year, we will all miss him for sure. But hopefully, he can bow out with one last entertaining controversy in Qatar.
And with a replay of the 2010 quarter-final between Uruguay and Ghana sure to happen at
the World Cup this year, all eyes will be on Luis Suarez to pull off some farewell drama.
By the way, Suarez’s strike partner, Edinson Cavani, will also be saying farewell to the
World Cup this year. That’s if he’s fit enough to make it. He’s currently nursing an ankle injury, but we expect that he’ll be just fine to make it to Qatar even though he may not be a starter.
Kevin De Bruyne
De Bruyne has not said he’ll be retiring for sure. In fact, he said he doesn’t know what will happen 4 years from now. But he is one person that has always been vocal about how tight schedules have become for footballers because more international games are now being played. So, at 31, you expect he may be flirting with the idea of hanging his international boot after this tournament and focusing on winning all he can win with that Manchester City super team.
He has also said that his entire family will be traveling to watch him at the World Cup for the first time this year because, according to him, this World Cup will be special and he won’t like his kids to miss it. Perhaps there’s a message in there; he will no longer play on a stage this big, so he wants his entire family to come and watch his last dance.
Eden Hazard
With the way Hazard’s career has gone recently, he might soon be retiring from football. He has struggled for playing time since he joined Real Madrid in 2019, and with the former Even though he has hardly played for his club this season, Hazard will surely be called up to lead Belgium to the World Cup in a matter of days. But from the look of things, that will be the last time he will do that.
Lionel Messi
Here’s another guy who will most likely be leading his national team for the last time in Qatar. Lionel Messi’s future is the hottest transfer topic in the world of football right now. With his contract with PSG expiring at the end of the season, it is still unclear where Messi will be playing his trade next season. France, Spain, England, America? Who knows? Well, one thing we know for sure is that 2022 will be his last World Cup, as he revealed in a recent interview. The former Barcelona captain has had his heart broken on the international stage several times, but he finally had some joy wearing the blue and white of Argentina last year when he led them to Copa America’s success. So, if he retires now, he will retire a happy man.
But he has one more World Cup tournament in him, and he is determined to make it special. He’s taking an early leave from PSG to get himself ready for Qatar and has been preserving himself all season. This will be the first time in Messi’s career that Argentina will be entering a World Cup as real favorites, so the 35-year-old is trying to make the best of Argentina’s brilliant form and make his last dance the best dance ever.
Will he be able to do that? Or will CR7 have something to say about that? Maybe it will even be a different legend entirely that will have the perfect last dance. What do you think?
Also, there are a lot more legends who might be going for their last World Cup this year.
Giroud, Pepe, Thiago Silva, Neuer, Lewandowski, Benzema