25 brilliant players who won’t be playing at Euro 2024

Euro 2024 is peering over the horizon and the deadline has now passed for the competing nations to submit their final squads.

As such, we now know definitively which stars will be gracing Germany this summer and who won’t be.

Here are 25 of the best players who won’t feature at Euro 2024, whether that’s due to injury, lack of selection or their country not qualifying. And to make it spicier, the order is completely randomised.

Alright, the list for the most part is randomised, but we have to start with the biggest name who won’t be at Euro 2024, don’t we?

Norway are in the midst of their own ‘golden generation’ and it would be a travesty if Erling Haaland doesn’t feature at a major tournament during his international career – his country’s last appearance came at Euro 2000.

If it weren’t for Reece James‘ chronic injury problems, he would have accumulated far more than 16 England caps to date.

Would you believe he’s only been named in the final squad for one major tournament?

Sweden have quite the array of attackers with Dejan Kulusevski, Viktor Gyokeres and Anthony Elanga all regulars, but Alexander Isak is the crown jewel.

How the hell did a team with such a dynamic forward line not qualify?

Mats Hummels’ heroic performances during Borussia Dortmund’s run to the Champions League final were probably enough to have earned him a spot in Germany’s squad, you’d have thought.

Julian Nagelsmann didn’t think so.

Usually a Portugal stalwart, Raphael Guerreiro’s injury-hit first season at Bayern Munich has seen him overlooked for the Selecao’s squad for Euro 2024.

This time last year, Marcus Rashford had nailed down the left wing spot in England’s attack and the competition wasn’t particularly close.

12 months on, he couldn’t even make Gareth Southgate’s provisional 33-player squad. Ouch.

You’d think Norway’s formula of having Martin Odegaard feed Haaland would be more than enough to win them games.

Alas, it has not worked to great results thus far.

It was the season from hell for Thibaut Courtois until its dramatic finale. He left pre-season after rupturing his ACL before tearing his meniscus late into recovery from that initial injury.

Belgium agreed to grant Courtois the summer off for recovery, though he did return at the back-end of Real Madrid’s Champions League and La Liga-double winning campaign.

Jack Grealish is a beloved part of the England setup and news of his axing was not well-received by his teammates, but ultimately his poor form for Manchester City cost him a spot at Euro 2024.

It’s rotten luck tearing your ACL only 50 minutes into the new season, but at least Jurrien Timber is on the mend again. The Netherlands could miss his useful versatility over in Germany.

For the first half of the 2023/24 season, there was no better Premier League left-back than Tottenham Hotspur’s Destiny Udogie.

Injury means Italy will be without his explosive dynamism this summer.

Harry Maguire, thanks for turning into the world’s greatest ever centre-back at Euro 2020.

That is all.

It’s a minor miracle that Lucas Hernandez has even featured at three international tournaments with France given his woeful injury record over the years.

James Maddison’s omission from England’s final squad means not a single Spurs player will represent the Three Lions this summer.

Ange Postecoglou’s Australian revolution is going to plan then.

It was bad enough for Courtois that he had to endure ACL and meniscus tears back-to-back. Poor Gavi suffered them at the same time while on Spain duty last November and isn’t due back until January 2025.

Another player disrupted by injury, Serge Gnabry has been in and out of both the Bayern Munich and Germany teams for years now.

The silver lining for 17-year-old Pau Cubarsi is that although he was cut for Spain’s Euro 2024 squad, he is expected to be one of the standout names in their Olympic roster later this summer.

Yeah, you’d still probably rather the Euros, wouldn’t you?

Though injury has ruled David Alaba out of playing at Euro 2024, he will still accompany Austria to Germany as their ‘non-playing captain’.

Not sure whether that’s a class gesture or makes me want to vomit.

Considering Jadon Sancho hasn’t been in an England squad since 2021, it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that even his late-season exploits for Dortmund weren’t enough for him to break back into Southgate’s thinking.

Christopher Nkunku first agreed to join Chelsea shortly after the summer 2022 transfer window closed.

This is probably not the situation he thought he would be in just under two years later.

Lukas Hradecky, the captain of the greatest Bayer Leverkusen team ever.

Finland, how dare you hold this legend back from Euro 2024 glory.

Ronald Koeman revealed he informed Ian Maatsen he did not make the Netherlands’ final squad only two days before he took part in the Champions League final with Dortmund.

Brutal.

Remember when Leon Goretzka came out of the coronavirus lockdown and all of a sudden he was a bodybuilder?

Anyway, he’s not going to Euro 2024.

Sandro Tonali’s ban for breaching betting regulations still has a few more months to run.

Italy have, however, been strengthened by the return of Nicolo Fagioli, who received a suspension similar to Tonali’s.

England could really do with Ben White’s competence and versatility. It’s a great shame he and the coaching staff are at odds.