Who will miss Euro 2024? From Jack Grealish to Thibaut Courtois, 10 of the biggest stars who won't feature in Germany
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Updated 14/06/2024 at 13:59 GMT+1
The countdown is on until Euro 2024 kicks off in Munich on June 14 when hosts Germany face Scotland. The excitement is building with all the final 26-man squads now confirmed. But who missed out? We run through some of the biggest names - and there are plenty - who failed to make the cut for their countries due to form or fitness, and those who didn't even qualify.
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The build-up to Euro 2024 took some interesting twists and turns as managers named their final squads ahead of last Friday’s deadline.
With a maximum of 26 places available in each national team, there were some high-profile casualties when it came to trimming down the squad lists.
Ill-timed injuries and faltering form cost scores of players a chance at stepping onto one of international football’s biggest stages.
But arguably none are more significant than the following 10 players, whose absence is sure to be noted and debated once the action kicks off on June 14 in Munich as Germany play Scotland.
Mats Hummels (Germany)
This season, the Borussia Dortmund centre-back reminded everyone of the talent that had previously established his reputation as one of Europe’s top defenders.
Hummels was the defensive rock behind a remarkable run to the UEFA Champions League final, but his inspiring form at club level wasn’t enough to convince Julian Nagelsmann to pick him.
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He wasn’t the only one – in-form Dortmund team-mates Karim Adeyemi and Julian Brandt are also among the absentees in Germany’s squad as they bid for Euros glory on home soil.
“It’s bitter for me as an individual because I’m currently one of the five best defenders in Germany,” Hummels said after his snub. “I have the self-confidence to say that.”
Serge Gnabry (Germany)
Gnabry is another big name to be missing from the Germany squad list, although in this case injury is to blame.
The Bayern Munich winger was ruled out with a hamstring problem after an injury-plagued campaign, leaving the hosts without an influential attacker who boasts 22 goals in 45 caps.
Gavi (Spain)
Barcelona’s talented teenager has become a go-to guy for the Spanish national team and featured in every game for them at the 2022 World Cup and in qualifying for Euro 2024.
However, the 19-year-old tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) on international duty in October and hasn’t recovered in time to make Luis de la Fuente’s squad and add to his 27 caps.
“The dressing room is like a funeral parlour,” De la Fuente said after Gavi suffered the injury against Georgia. “This is the hardest moment I have experienced in football.”
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Image credit: AFP
Marco Verratti (Italy)
Verratti was one of the stars of Italy’s Euro 2020 triumph three years ago, but his decision to leave Paris Saint-Germain for Qatari side Al-Arabi aged just 30 last summer - and subsequent reports that he turned down an international call-up - damaged his chances of being involved this time around.
A 55-time Italy international, Verratti hasn’t featured for his country since June 2023, with Luciano Spalletti not bringing him back into the fold since his appointment last August.
Verratti is far from the only member of Italy’s title-winning team to be absent this time: Domenico Berardi and Francesco Acerbi miss out through injury, along with Aston Villa winger Nicolo Zaniolo and Atalanta defender Giorgio Scalvini, while Manuel Locatelli wasn’t called up.
Jack Grealish (England)
A year on from being a key part of Manchester City’s stunning Treble success, Grealish has been left out of England’s squad after a costly dip in form.
Something of a Three Lions stalwart under Gareth Southgate, the winger’s snub came as a surprise as the manager explained that “other players have had stronger seasons."
He’s not wrong. Grealish’s return of three goals and three assists in 36 games for City across all competitions in 2023/24 was a far cry from his 16 goal involvements a year earlier.
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Marcus Rashford (England)
Southgate was unafraid to wield the axe with long-serving members of his squad as Rashford, Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling and James Maddison were left at home and a “devastated” Harry Maguire wasn’t risked after struggling to recover from an injury problem.
The Manchester United forward struggled for form throughout 2023/24, but he has 60 caps for England and has featured in the last four tournaments, scoring three goals for the Three Lions at the 2022 World Cup.
Thibaut Courtois (Belgium)
Fresh off keeping a clean sheet in a Champions League final for Real Madrid, Courtois will not be heading to Germany after being controversially dropped by Belgium boss Domenico Tedesco.
The pair’s relationship reportedly soured last year and a long-term injury that ruled out the keeper for most of the 2023/24 season didn’t give him a chance to build bridges and make his way back into the international fold in time for Euro 2024.
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Image credit: Getty Images
David Alaba (Austria)
In a huge blow for Austria, their star man Alaba will only be able to accompany the team as a ‘non-playing captain’ in Germany.
The versatile Real Madrid man suffered a serious knee injury in December and hasn’t returned to the pitch since, but the Austrian Football Federation announced that he will still travel with the squad to try and inspire them through a daunting Group D featuring France, the Netherlands and Poland.
Christopher Nkunku (France)
Nkunku hasn’t had much luck. In Qatar two years ago, he sustained a knee injury in pre-tournament training and was forced to drop out before the World Cup began. This time around, an injury-plagued debut season with Chelsea cost him a chance of featuring at his first major tournament.
The 26-year-old spent much of the 2023/24 campaign in the treatment room, scoring three goals in 11 Premier League games, and his late-season return wasn’t enough to earn him a spot in Didier Deschamps' side.
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Image credit: Getty Images
Defender Lucas Hernandez, who played for just 13 minutes at the last World Cup before suffering a tournament-ending injury, is again unavailable due to an ACL tear.
Joshua Zirkzee (Netherlands)
The Netherlands are missing some big names through injury, including Marten de Roon, Sven Botman and the recently-returned Jurrien Timber, but there have been some notable snubs from Ronald Koeman too, with Ian Maatsen’s impressive form on loan at Dortmund not proving enough to earn him a call.
But perhaps the biggest surprise was that Bologna striker Zirkzee failed to make the cut after a sensational season where he fired the Rossoblu into the Champions League with 11 goals and won Serie A’s Best Young Player award.
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PLAYERS WHOSE COUNTRY DIDN'T QUALIFY
However, it's not just about players who weren't selected. There will be plenty of big names missing because their country didn't qualify. Here are some of the most notable...
Norway
Erling Haaland (Man City), Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
Man City's record-breaking talisman Erling Haaland and Arsenal skipper Martin Odegaard spent the 2023/24 campaign battling it out for the Premier League title - just like they had the season prior - which Haaland eventually secured on the final day of the season after a thrilling run-in for his second crown in as many seasons.
Both players will have plenty of time to reflect on the season gone by this summer, with neither of them heading to Germany after Norway failed to qualify.
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Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard
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Haaland's six goals in five qualifying games could not help Stale Solbakken's side advance beyond the qualification stages, where they fell six points short of Scotland, who secured an automatic spot at back-to-back European Championships for the first time since 1996.
Sweden
Alexander Isak (Newcastle), Dejan Kulusevski (Spurs), Victor Lindelof (Man Utd)
Newcastle United front-man Alexander Isak backed up his impressive debut season in English football with 21 goals in 30 games this season, but he will not be taking his prolific form to the Euros this summer.
The qualification campaign was a frustrating one for the 6'4" striker, who missed Sweden's last three matches with a groin issue, and only managed one goal in five games before injury struck.
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Sweden eventually came up nine points short of Austria, who battled with Belgium for the top spot in the automatic spots.
The country's failure to reach the finals means Tottenham Hotspur's Dejan Kulusevski is another big name that will not be headlining in Germany this summer, while Man Utd defender Victor Lindelof will also stay at home.
Wales
Brennan Johnson (Spurs), Ben Davies (Spurs), Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest), Harry Wilson (Fulham)
A raft of Welsh Premier League stars will miss out on the tournament in Germany this summer, after their painful play-off final defeat against Poland on penalties.
Following a goalless draw at the Cardiff City Stadium, penalties would determine Wales' fate and it was Daniel James' decisive miss that handed Robert Lewandowski and Poland their ticket to the Euros.
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Tottenham duo Brennan Johnson and Ben Davies miss out on a summer of European action, while Nottingham Forest's Neco Williams and Fulhams's Harry Wilson join them in early preparations for the 2024/25 Premier League campaign.
Republic of Ireland
Evan Ferguson (Brighton)
The Republic of Ireland reached successive European Championship campaigns for the only time in their history when they qualified for the 2012 and 2016 tournaments, but they have failed to qualify since.
Exciting Brighton and Hove Albion striker Evan Ferguson could not propel his home country toward the top end of a tricky qualification table, where they ended up well short of the top two nations France and the Netherlands.
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Evan Ferguson
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NORTHERN IRELAND
Jonny Evans (Man Utd)
Eyebrows were raised far and wide when Jonny Evans returned to Man Utd at the start of the 2023/24 campaign - eight years after he left the club - but the 36-year-old has impressed at Old Trafford and has been a stalwart in the Northern Ireland defence, and even racked up his 100th cap during qualification.
Montenegro
Stefan Savic (Atletico Madrid)
A former Premier League champion with Man City, the now-Atletico Madrid defender is a La Liga and Europa League winner with his current club, but he will not be adding a European crown with his nation to his trophy cabinet.
Despite chipping in with a couple of goals during Montenegro's qualifying campaign, they finished behind Hungary and Serbia in qualifying.
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