We already said in some of previous posts about the players getting injured before the World Cup. It is time to see which players are still injured.

Early casualties were Gabriel Heinze (Argentina), Roque Santa Cruz (Paraguay), Ricardo Oliveira (Brazil) and England’s Michael Owen, Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole. They soon might return to club duty, opening the possibility to make their WC teams.

But Francesco Totti (Italy) will have an uphill battle after an ankle fracture and torn ligaments that required surgery. Lost for the Cup are Jorge Andrade (Portugal), Juan Valern (Spain) and Luciano Figueroa (Argentina), all to knee surgery.

Others with light injuries are Raúl, Spain; Kevin Kuranji, Germany; Ronaldinho, Cafú and Dida, Brazil; Zinha, Mexico, and Argentina’s wonder kid Lionel Messi. All are expected to play in the tournament.

Two U.S. players sustained injuries that would have placed doubt on their participation. Captain Claudio Reyna returned to play for Manchester City, and Eddie Johnson is making progress.

As you can see, it is quite a list of players. Great players, we might add. With the yearly match schedule getting more and more occupied, the matches become almost a Russian roulette for both players and coaches.

Source: FloridaToday.com