The nature of international football, with limited preparation time and a disparate group of players coming together at short notice, creates an element of uncertainty. Plans can fail to take hold or else fall apart under intense scrutiny, leaving outstanding individuals all at sea. Here are five players whose World Cup performances have come up short.
Javier Mascherano – Argentina
It’s difficult to escape the sense that age has finally caught up with him. At 34, Mascherano can no longer hold be expected to hold together a woefully unbalanced side being pulled in different directions. He’s been an excellent and ultra-reliable servant for Argentina over the years, making a record 146 appearances, but no longer seems up to speed.
Mascherano is the sort of player whose work goes unnoticed when he’s performing well, but can come to attention for all the wrong reasons, when out of form and badly exposed, as he has been in Russia. He’s far from the only one, as Argentina struggled through their group, but his mistake in giving away a needless penalty against Nigeria could have cost them dearly.
Manuel Neuer – Germany
Widely regarded as the best goalkeeper in the world, and a major contributor to Germany’s success four years ago, Joachim Low kept faith with Manuel Neuer even after a season spent on the sidelines through injury. He played just four times for Bayern Munich but was still trusted to be his country’s number one, despite Marc Andre Ter Stegen coming to the fore at Barcelona.
A pillar of stability in previous tournaments, Neuer looked shaky this time. His situation wasn’t helped by a constantly changing defence but the once unflappable goalkeeper failed to inspire confidence in those ahead of him. He fumbled what should have been a routine save against South Korea and then gave them a second goal when coming forward in search of an equaliser. Dallying on the ball, it was pinched off him by Ju Se-jong and launched upfield for simple tap-in.
Robert Lewandowski – Poland
Another Bayern Munich player who has endured a poor tournament, complete with an early exit, is Robert Lewandowski. Although Poland misfired all over the pitch, he was still the talisman charged with making a difference in tight games and he didn’t. Their captain and most influential player, he scored 16 goals in qualifying but has failed to deliver for the second tournament running.
A disappointing Euro 2016 gave way to an even worse World Cup, with the fate of Lewandowski and his teammates confirmed after just two games. The first seeds finished bottom of their group and their main goal threat was isolated and uninvolved for long stretches. Many people’s outside tip to win the Golden Boot, he didn’t come close to scoring.
Neymar – Brazil
He may well come alive in the knockout stages, and Brazil will need him to, but Neymar has been a major disappointment so far. As with Neuer, injury is undoubtedly a factor, as Paris Saint-Germain’s world record signing missed the final few months of the season with a broken metatarsal. Tite has even admitted that he’s still trying to recover full match sharpness.
In Brazil’s group games he showed flashes of brilliance but hasn’t taken control of proceedings as expected. A petulant and self-indulgent streak continues to undermine Neymar’s performances and he no longer has the excuse of youth and inexperience. He has been targeted with some rough challenges but doesn’t help his cause with egregious dives like the one against Costa Rica.
Goncalo Guedes – Portugal
Still a relative newcomer to the international scene, there were high hopes for Goncalo Guedes to become the World Cup’s breakout star. Presented with a chance to step out from Cristiano Ronaldo’s considerable shadow, the 21-year-old hasn’t made the most of it, reverting to the bench for the deciding match with Iran.
Guedes was highlighted as his country’s emerging talent before the tournament but Portugal have continued to rely heavily on Ronaldo instead. The winger, who spent last season on loan at Valencia, played through the middle against Spain and spurned a couple of good opportunities to score. An anonymous showing in the 1-0 win over Morocco then saw him dropped along with Bernardo Silva.
