What do George Best, Ryan Giggs, Eric Cantona, George Weah and Alfredo Di Stefano all have in common? They were all world class players in their prime but never got the chance to show people their talents on the biggest stage of them all – the World Cup. The fact that there are only so many qualifying places ultimately means that certain players will miss out on the great tournament and it could be argued that the international stage is where the greats truly become legends of the game (you don’t seem them looping goals from Pele’s Santos days or Maradonna’s Napoli stint). So in 2010, who are the talented that will be watching the tournament from home wishing that their fellow national compatriots were as brilliant as they were?

Zlatan Ibrahimovic:

The big Swede has often been criticized for failing to perform in the big games and his first season at Barcelona has left many questioning the player’s credentials. But Zlatan has his fans, and it’s clear that Barcelona would not spend the ridiculous amount of money (and swapping the world class Samuel Eto’o) if they didn’t think that Ibra was good enough, and rumours that he will return to Turin giants Juventus may be nothing short of fantasy. Whether Sweden’s problems lie with Zlatan is up for debate however, as the player who has never been a stranger to international goal droughts may not be realising his full potential for his country; something often claimed when the player is donning the famous Barcelona shirt.

Petr Cech:

I often feel sorry for Cech, because due to his status as one of the top goalkeepers in the world, his mistakes are often over analysed and amplified by the media. Never the less, he has been a solid goalkeeper for both club and country, and despite being blamed (and blaming himself) for Czech Republic’s exit to Turkey in Euro 2008, he will no doubt remain his nation’s number one until he decides to hang up the gloves. What is even more remarkable is the fact that Cech is still only 27 years of age, so hopefully for Petr his absence from this particular World Cup will be a one off. The Czech Republic is still regrouping after the majority of a golden generation retired, the likes of Berger, Koller and of course Nedved have all now gone and this has made it difficult for the nation to be the force they once were.

Luka Modric:

Did anyone else see Modric’s goal on the final day of the Premiership for Tottenham against Burnley? It was truly spectacular and Modric has developed well this season, so much that you can barely open up a British newspaper without seeing his name linked with one of Europe’s elit. But Croatia had a difficult group and fell short of both Ukraine and England and failed to recreate the domination over the English they displayed in the Euro 2008 qualifying. Modric was injured for Croatia’s crunch game against England at Wembley, and this led to acquisitions that this was intentional by the Premier League in order to aid England’s chances. Modric is the heart of the Croatia team, and despite a lack of height, he can still pull his own weight on a football pitch and isn’t afraid of anyone.

Mirko Vucinic:

It’s strange how international footballs youngest nation, Montenegro, can hold such an amazing player, but Vucinic has been in fine form this season and indeed the past several. Chelsea fans will remember Mirko well, after he smashed home two goals against them in the 2008-09 Champions League and now that Roma are looking like a much more dominating outfit, Vucinic is playing with a lot more confidence and has been a big part of Roma’s title and cup push. Vucinic is Montenegro’s record goal scorer with 8 goals (seriously) and would appear to be the spearhead of the team, yet the rest of the team is considerably weaker, thus diminishing Vucinic’s chances of ever being seen on the world stage and I fear that he may never get the recognition that he truly deserves.

Shay Given:

Arguably the Premiership’s top goalkeeper, and arguably he should be looking forward to the tournament this summer if it wasn’t for THAT goal. Many people in England often joke that they wish that Given was English, the same way they wished Giggs would have chose to play of England to solve their never ending left midfield headache. He made his name at Newcastle United, and people often believed that he managed to save the Toon Army points much like Schmeichel used to for Man Utd. He’s kept up this form for Man City and is still regarded as one of the top players in the league. He was selected in the team of the decade by many Premiership fans and no can doubt his credentials. But that one goal from France ruined Irish dreams and denied many fans across the world a chance to see Given making world class saves, it also led to a number of Irish people bizarrely destroying their Henry hoovers in protest.

Emmanuel Adebayor:

I love Adebayor, I think most people that aren’t a fan of Arsenal (or probably Man Utd) love Adebayor as he is the funniest man in football at the moment. Does anyone else feel that when he scored that famous goal against Arsenal, he ran down the pitch like a horse? There’s also this little gem of a story I’ve pointed out in previous articles and there is a wealth of videos on YouTube of Adebayor dancing, whether it be in car parks or to half time music. Luckily, the BBC has moved quickly to sign Adebayor up as an analyst for British football fans, meaning one of the top strikers in the Premiership will be involved in this year’s World Cup. Thank god for the BBC!

Andrei Arshavin:

A player that was never really noticed until later in his career, he almost joined his boyhood heroes of Barcelona before going to Arsenal where has has since impressed and become an important part of their team. But despite the depth and strength Russia had this year, they failed to qualify and were knocking out in the play-offs by a plucky Slovenia side. In four years time Arshavin will be 32 and a chance to see him in the 2010 World Cup would have seen him in his prime and many would have considered Russia to be a dangerous proposition. Russia are probably the best nation not to go to this Summer’s World Cup and it’s such a shame that we won’t see the likes of Arshavin, Akinfeev and Pavyluchenko strutting their stuff on the pitch.

Any One Of A Number Of Argentineans:

It would be easy to point out a number of players from qualified teams who may not be going, but Argentina is a different case. Watching Argentina’s qualification quest was entertaining, if not a bit bizarre. But just look at their Wikipedia page for current squad and recent call-ups – that is ridiculous. Albeit Maradonna wanted to try something new against Haiti and play a bunch of players who ply their trade in the national league, but Palermo and Ortega were world class about a decade ago, not today. Then he seems determined to play an ageing Juan Sebastian Veron in midfield for every game when he has the likes of Cambiasso, Gago, Banega and Gonzalez, while Jonas Guierrez is guaranteed to start every game, no matter what position he has to play (he’s so far played in the middle, on the right, on the left and in both full-back positions at some point for his country). There is Kun Aguero, Hugain, Lopez, Lavezzi, Tevez and Milito available to him and it appears that Martin Palermo is assured a place and Hernan Crespo is coming under serious consideration, presumably for the great bench warming skills he has obtained since his return to Parma. I wonder how far he has managed to dwindle down the 90 men under consideration and the recent 4-0 hammering of Haiti will only cause more confusion. It’ll be a laugh for the rest of the world though!