Soccer
Top stars missing for their nations this international break
England and France are among those worst-affected, with the likes of Kylian Mbappé, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer unavailable for the UEFA Nations League.
Club soccer is put on hold this week for another instalment of international action. There’s Nations League fixtures in Europe and Concacaf, while the South American sides continue the qualification process for the 2026 World Cup.
The November international break is the third of the nascent 2024/25 season and the last one until March. Many top players have already played 20 games this campaign and there are plenty of niggling injuries that will prevent stars joining up with their national teams.
Why isn’t Kylian Mbappé playing for France?
The most high-profile of the November absentee is surely Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé, who does not join up with the France squad for fixtures against Israel and Italy. Mbappé has suffered fitness issues since making the move from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer and France boss Didier Deschamps confirmed that he was happy for his captain to remain in Madrid.
“I’ve had several conversations with him. I thought it over and made this decision for this camp. I believe it’s better this way. I’m not going to debate it," Deschamps said.
France are also without PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé due to a hamstring injury. Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana has withdrawn after “experiencing pain in his left knee” during last weekend’s draw against Arsenal.
Why isn’t Cole Palmer playing for England?
When it comes to the sheer number of absentees, European Championship finalists England will take some beating. The November international break is the final one before Thomas Tuchel takes charge of the national team and interim boss Lee Carsley will be without eight England players for the games against Greece and Republic of Ireland.
In total, England are without Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) and Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton).
That’s a huge amount of quality, particularly in the attacking areas, to remove from the England squad. However it will give Carsley the chance to hand minutes to in-form youngsters Anthony Gordon, Morgan Rogers and Morgan Gibbs-White, who may otherwise have struggled for game time.
Why isn’t Lamine Yamal playing for Spain?
He may only be 17 years old, but Lamine Yamal has already established himself as one of the most exciting players in the world. A key part of the Spain team that clinched the European Championship over the summer, Yamal finished eighth in the Ballon d’Or rankings for 2024.
However the Barcelona youngster picked up an ankle sprain in the Champions League victory over Crvena Zvezda and was withdrawn from the Spain squad. He will be forced to sit out his nation’s international fixtures against Denmark (November 15) and Switzerland (November 18).
Spain are also without Aston Villa defender Pau Torres, who withdrew from the squad on Tuesday. He arrived at the Spain camp but was experiencing muscular discomfort and will return to England.