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When the World Cup comes around, as a football fan, I want to see the best players on the planet on show.

Managers of
national teams can pick 23 names for their respective squads, so you
would think they would have enough chances to get it right. However,
glancing at the squad lists of some of the contenders, there are many
stars missing and I am not happy about it. Furthermore, some omissions
will be the reason why some of these teams will fail in South Africa.

Let´s start with
Brazil. The five-time champions have probably the best defensive unit
in their history heading into a World Cup, featuring a stellar
goalkeeper in Julio Cesar and players like Maicon, Lucio and Daniel
Alves. However, in attack, there is a shortage of creativity, speed and
flair, and coach Dunga is to blame. The omission of Alexandre Pato is
baffling to me. Sure, the young forward was injured for a large part of
the season and just now returned to full fitness.

However, even with
all the time he spent on the sidelines, the AC Milan standout still
scored 14 goals in 30 games. If I was picking Brazil’s squad he would
be one of the first names on the teamsheet. He offers something no one
else on the team has and, make no mistake about it, he will be missed.

Argentina’s options

Brazil´s fierce
South American rivals Argentina also left behind some notable names.
It’s always easy to pick on Diego Maradona, isn’t it? However there is
no question that Champions League winners Javier Zanetti and Esteban
Cambiasso should both be travelling to South Africa. Maradona´s team
has plenty of talent, but would have benefited from some extra
experience and class. Zanetti and Cambiasso were ever-present for Jose
Mourinho´s Internazionale this season and would have been invaluable
assets at the World Cup.

Zanetti can play
anywhere across defence and midfield, while Cambiasso is one of the
best midfielders on the planet. Even if he would be playing second
fiddle to Captain Javier Mascherano,

Cambiasso would
still have been an important player for Los Albicelestes. Plus, there
is no reason why he couldn’t play alongside Mascherano. Especially
considering Juan Sebastian Veron may be the other starting central
midfielder.

Domenech blunder

Let´s dissect the
picks of another controversial manager, Raymond Domenech. As if the
French public didn’t dislike him enough, the coach of Les Bleus decided
to leave out the nation’s most exciting forward, Karim Benzema. Is he
overweight? Yes. Did he have a great season with Real Madrid? No.
However, some of the other strikers going to South Africa didn’t set
the world alight either and Benzema still has the talent that can
change the game at any time, even coming on as a late substitute.
Domenech definitely missed a trick here and will pay the price. Up
front, France will rely too much on a man who doesn’t have either the
work rate or motivation to lead the line, Thierry Henry.

A changed man

Defending World Cup
champions Italy also left behind a couple of potential game winners.
Antonio Cassano is the obvious example of this. I understand Marcello
Lippi believes the Sampdoria forward can be a disruptive influence on
the team, and up until this season, I would have agreed with him.
However, Cassano is a changed man. His serious relationship with an
Italian swimmer has made him more content and mature and there is no
doubt he would have been a key player for a side that relies too much
on older legs and established names. Cassano would have been a breath
of fresh air that could have inspired the Azzuri to an extended stay in
South Africa. Without him, I don’t see them making it past the round of
16.

So those are my
views concerning a quartet of traditional World Cup contenders; that
this time around will be coming back from FIFA´s showpiece event
empty-handed. For a competition like this, you have to take your best
men. And in my opinion, none of these teams are doing that.