Major wave of injuries ahead of the World Cup: Timber, Karl and Wesley ruled out just days before the start of the tournament
The list of injured players ahead of the 2026 World Cup continues to grow in the final days of preparations, and the latest confirmed absences particularly affect the Netherlands, Germany and Brazil. Just two days before the start of the tournament, which according to FIFA's official schedule begins on 11 June 2026 in Mexico, Jurrien Timber, Lennart Karl and Wesley have dropped out of the squads. These are players of different profiles and statuses, but in all three national teams their absence raises tactical questions ahead of the first group-stage matches. The Netherlands have been left without Arsenal defender Timber because of a groin problem, Germany without 18-year-old Bayern talent Karl because of a thigh injury, and Brazil without right-back Wesley after an injury sustained in a friendly match. Since everything happened at a stage when the coaches already had to have almost finalized plans for their starting lineups, every change carries more weight than merely administratively filling a squad list.
According to FIFA's official rules for the 2026 World Cup, a player already included in the final squad may be replaced only in the event of serious injury or illness, and no later than 24 hours before his national team's first match. FIFA states that the replacement must come from the previous expanded list, which means that coaches in such situations do not choose completely freely, but from among the group of players who had already been registered as potential candidates. This further explains why the final changes in national-team squads are followed with great attention: they affect not only the number of players, but also the structure of the team, the balance by positions and the ability to adapt to different opponents. In the cases of the Netherlands, Germany and Brazil, the injuries occurred at moments when little time remained before their first matches. For that reason, the final preparatory decisions will be made under pressure, with limited room to integrate new solutions.
The Netherlands without Timber, Geertruida brought back into the squad
Associated Press reported that the Netherlands left Jurrien Timber out of their World Cup squad because the Arsenal defender had not recovered sufficiently from a groin injury. Timber, according to the same agency report, played 55 minutes in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain, but the national-team staff assessed that he was not ready for the demands of a tournament that can last several weeks. For Ronald Koeman's national team, this is a significant loss because Timber can cover several defensive roles, from centre-back to full-back positions, and such versatility is especially important at tournaments with a congested schedule. His injury is not only a question of one position, but also of the overall depth of the defence, especially in matches in which the Netherlands will have to change rhythm, system or the height of the back line. Lutsharel Geertruida has been called up instead of Timber, bringing the Dutch list back to the maximum number of players.
Geertruida enters the squad as a solution Koeman knows well, but the circumstances of the call-up are not ideal. A late entry into a tournament squad means that the player must quickly adapt to plans that had already been drawn up with a different distribution of minutes and responsibilities. According to FIFA's official schedule, the Netherlands play their first match on 14 June against Japan in Dallas, and then face Sweden and Tunisia in the group. It is a group in which tactical discipline and squad depth will be important because the opponents have different profiles: Japan traditionally brings high intensity and technical organization, Sweden physical strength and transition play, and Tunisia compactness and directness. Timber's absence could therefore change the way the Netherlands allocate minutes in the back line, especially if Koeman wants to preserve flexibility between formations with three and four defenders. According to the information available, the decision on Timber's absence was made ahead of the Netherlands' final warm-up match against Uzbekistan in New York.
For Timber, this is another difficult moment in a period marked by injury problems. Although his quality is unquestionable, national-team tournaments do not leave much room for a gradual return through limited minutes. In club football, coaches can sometimes manage a player more carefully across several matches, but at the World Cup every wrong assessment can have consequences for the entire campaign. That is why the decision of the Dutch staff, however unpleasant in sporting terms, is also medically cautious. Timber could have been important in matches in which the Netherlands would have had to defend wide spaces or build play from the back line, but if he is not fully fit, the risk of aggravating the injury would be too great. Geertruida now gets the chance to take over part of that responsibility, at a moment when every training session before the first match matters.
Germany lose Karl after a training injury in Chicago
The German Football Association announced that Lennart Karl will miss the World Cup after suffering a tear in the muscle of his left thigh during the national team's training session in Chicago. The DFB states that the injury occurred during the final training session ahead of the warm-up match against the United States of America, which makes the absence particularly painful because it happened immediately before the team entered the tournament rhythm. Karl is one of the youngest players in the German squad and a footballer who was not necessarily expected to carry the team immediately, but his call-up had both symbolic and sporting value. As an 18-year-old Bayern player, he represented part of the new generation with which Julian Nagelsmann is trying to refresh the German national team. His withdrawal is therefore not only the loss of one option, but also a blow to a development story that was supposed to receive an important stage at the biggest tournament.
Nagelsmann called up Assan Ouédraogo, the RB Leipzig midfielder, instead of Karl, which shows that Germany are not necessarily looking for an identical replacement by profile, but a player who can bring energy, courage and new dynamism in midfield. In its announcement, the DFB emphasized that Ouédraogo, like Karl, is a talent who has already made a good impression in the national-team environment. For Germany, it is important that the replacement be capable of quickly fitting into the clear demands of the system, because the first match against Curaçao in Houston is played on 14 June, according to FIFA's official schedule. Germany are in Group E with Curaçao, Ivory Coast and Ecuador, and such a schedule requires depth in midfield and the ability to control different types of matches. Expectations will be high in the first round, but precisely such matches are often awkward if the favourite does not find rhythm early. Karl's absence reduces one creative and unpredictable option from the bench or from the rotation.
Karl's injury further highlights the risks of the final phase of preparations, when teams are caught between the need for intensive work and caution because of possible overloads. Training sessions ahead of the tournament must maintain competitive sharpness, but every muscle injury in that period almost automatically means the end of the dream of playing. The DFB's confirmation that it is a tear in the muscle of the left thigh leaves little room for a quick recovery, so the decision to replace him was expected after medical examinations. For Karl, the only consolation is that he is at the beginning of his career and has other major tournaments ahead of him, but for the current German squad the loss remains concrete. Nagelsmann now has to decide whether to use Ouédraogo as a direct tournament option or as additional cover for midfield. In both cases, the change comes late and reduces the time for automatisms.
Brazil lose Wesley to injury, Ancelotti left without an important option at right-back
Brazil have also suffered a serious blow ahead of the start of the World Cup because Wesley dropped out of the squad after an injury sustained in a warm-up match. According to reports from international sports media and CBF announcements about the subsequent call-up of Éderson, the Brazilian staff had to change the list after the right-back was ruled out of contention for the tournament. This absence is especially sensitive because Wesley was one of Carlo Ancelotti's most important options at right-back, a position that had already brought Brazil certain dilemmas before the start of the tournament. Brazil traditionally have an enormous selection of attacking and midfield players, but the balance of the defensive flanks often determines how aggressively the team will be able to attack through Vinícius Júnior, Raphinha, Neymar and other offensive assets. When a natural right-back drops out of the squad, the coach must decide whether to use a more defensive solution, move a player from another position or change the behaviour of the entire back line. In such a context, Wesley's absence has broader tactical significance.
In May, the CBF announced that Carlo Ancelotti had named 26 players for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and according to FIFA's official schedule Brazil play their first match on 13 June against Morocco at the New York New Jersey Stadium. This means the change happened in a very short period before the opening of Brazil's campaign. Morocco are an opponent who can punish every defensive misalignment, especially through quick transitions and play down the flanks, so Ancelotti must find a solution that will not disrupt the team's balance. The call-up of Éderson, the Atalanta midfielder, for the place opened by Wesley's absence further shows that Brazil may not simply fill the same position with a player of the same profile. This may mean that the team's internal structure will change, while the tasks on the right flank will be taken over by one of the remaining defensive players. According to the information available, Ancelotti emphasized after the warm-up match that he had a clearer picture of the starting lineup, but Wesley's injury nevertheless requires a new assessment.
Brazil are under particular scrutiny ahead of the tournament because the five-time world champions are always expected to fight for the very top. Ancelotti's arrival on the bench brought additional attention, but also high expectations that individual quality would be turned into a stable competitive system. The injury to a player who was supposed to help define the right side of the defence is therefore a problem that goes beyond the usual pre-tournament corrections. If Brazil use a more conservative solution on that side, the team could gain more security but lose some width in attack. If the coach opts for a more offensive reshuffle, the risk of space behind the full-back increases, especially against opponents waiting for transitions. That is exactly why Wesley's absence in Brazil's case is described as a heavy blow, because it comes in a position where Ancelotti does not have too many natural replacements of the same kind.
Late changes are especially sensitive in an expanded tournament
The 2026 World Cup is the first edition with 48 national teams and 104 matches, and according to FIFA's schedule it will be played in 16 host cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The expansion of the tournament changes the way coaches plan their squads because they must think about longer travel, different climatic conditions, a larger number of matches and a potentially more complex path through the knockout stage. In such a format, squad depth becomes even more important, especially for national teams with ambitions to go far. Injuries in the final week of preparations therefore mean not only a loss of quality, but also the loss of a plan for distributing workloads. Timber, Karl and Wesley are not players of the same status in their national teams, but each of them was part of the broader mechanism with which the coaches were trying to cover different scenarios during the tournament.
For the Netherlands, the emphasis is on defensive flexibility, for Germany on depth and the development of creative options, and for Brazil on the stability of the right-back position. What they have in common is that late changes create a chain reaction. One player who enters as a replacement must make up for the absence, but at the same time the role of other players who were already secure in the squad also changes. Someone who was supposed to be a rotation option can become a starter, someone who was supposed to cover one position can move to another, and training sessions that were supposed to serve fine-tuning are now used for emergency reshuffling. Such things are often not immediately visible at major tournaments, but they become important when matches enter the final 20 minutes, when fatigue grows and when the coach has to turn to the bench. That is why the list of injured players ahead of the World Cup is one of the key topics in the final stage of preparations.
FIFA's replacement rules give national teams a necessary safety mechanism, but they do not remove the sporting problem that arises when a player drops out at the last moment. Medical approval and an administrative replacement are only the first step; the real challenge begins on the training pitch and in the dressing room. Geertruida must quickly enter the Dutch rhythm, Ouédraogo the German demands, and Brazil must find a way to ensure that Wesley's absence does not disrupt the team's balance. All three national teams have enough quality to absorb the blow, but the World Cup is often decided by details, and injuries immediately before the start of the competition are precisely the details that can change the course of a group. Ahead of the first matches, therefore, alongside discussions about favourites and the form of the best players, increasing attention will also be paid to the question of who is fit enough to withstand the tempo of the tournament. For the Netherlands, Germany and Brazil, the answer to that question has already become more complicated than it was a few days ago.
Sources:
- FIFA – official schedule of the 2026 World Cup, data on the format, hosts, groups and matches (link)
- FIFA – official rules and deadlines for final squads and replacements of injured players (link)
- Associated Press – report on Jurrien Timber's absence and Lutsharel Geertruida's call-up to the Dutch squad (link)
- German Football Association DFB – official announcement on Lennart Karl's injury and Assan Ouédraogo's call-up (link)
- Confederação Brasileira de Futebol – announcement of Brazil's final squad for the World Cup and the national team's preparation plan (link)
- Confederação Brasileira de Futebol – men's national-team news section with confirmation of Éderson's subsequent call-up instead of Wesley (link)
- beIN Sports – report on Wesley's injury and the consequences for Brazil's plans ahead of the tournament (link)