June is with us, and that can only mean one thing for us football fans. EURO 2020. Or 2021, if you prefer it.
The summer that we have all been awaiting but that the Covid-19 pandemic decided to steal away from us last year. After overcoming a lot of obstacles, our summer of football finally arrived. Unfortunately though, for some who were actually going to play for it, they still have to miss out, and we have to miss out on seeing their exceptional talent. So this week, I'm going to give a shoutout to the great players that will not be shining during this month, but are surely great names to the world of football. Virgil Van Dijk
He can arguably be described as one of the best centre-backs in the world, but unfortunately an ACL tear injury at the beginning of the season, saw him not only miss out on all domestic football with Liverpool, but also on this summer's Euros.
On October 17th, the Dutchman tore his ACL during a challenge against Everton and England goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford, during the Merseyside derby. The 29-year old had told Liverpool's website that he is preparing to be ready to get back to the field for pre-season and that means that he will miss out on representing the Netherlands. Van Dijk said, "With everything that is going on, I feel physically it is the right decision that I've decided not to go to the Euros and to go into my last phase of rehab during the off-season. So, the full focus will be on pre-season with the club and that's a realistic goal, so I am looking forward to that. "Obviously I am very gutted to miss the Euros, to miss the European Championship and leading out my own country there, but things have been like they have and I have to accept it - we all have to accept it. I think the decision to not go is the right decision in the grand scheme of things. It's tough, but I'm at peace with it." Devastating to not see one of the most exciting players in European football this summer, but hopefully the Netherlands will make it to the World Cup next year, and we'll see him shine in Qatar. Erling Haaland & ​Martin Odegaard
Two of the greatest upcoming talents in European football will be missing from the Euros after Norway failed to qualify. Having had to face Serbia in the European Qualifying play-off, the Norwegians suffered a 2-1 loss and saw themselves out of the European tournament.
Erling Haaland needs no introduction. The wonderkid who is making headlines in Germany with Borussia Dortmund. It's a shame that there is no possibility of seeing him compete against the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo, maybe he could have also ended up being top goalscorer. It would have surely been possible with the help of Martin Odegaard in the midfield. The 22-year old midfielder reached the headlines of the January 2021 transfer window, after he joined London club Arsenal on loan from Spanish giants Real Madrid. The midfielder has great potential and can easily become one of the best midfielders in Europe, but we are yet to witness his brilliance on an international level. Nicolo Zaniolo
One of the most devastating stories in football for a player who is only 21 years old and has such great potential. For those who watch Italian football, they surely have been impressed by Roma's young prospect Zaniolo who has been compared to the likes of Andrea Pirlo. And I agree, having seen such player play live for Roma against Juventus during the 2018/19 season, he is such an admirable player, who you surely won't get tired of watching.
During the 2019/20 season, during Roma's Serie A fixture against Juventus, as he managed to pass five Juventus players, he got beaten down and tore his right ACL, which saw him miss out on the rest of the season. Luckily, thanks to the fact that he is still very young and fit, he found it easier than most to get back to the pitch and during the September international break, he returned to Mancini's bench to represent Italy against The Netherlands in a Nations League clash. During that match, Zaniolo was seen limping out of the pitch, when later came the news that he had torn his left ACL this time and so not only went to miss out on another season with Roma but also to miss out on the Euros. Now Zaniolo is preparing himself to play for Roma once again next season, and we all hope to see such a great midfielder compete in Serie A and for Italy again, as it would be a huge shame if such a player is not given his chance to shine on the big stage. Moise Kean
Such a great striker but it seems that he just cannot find his feet in the footballing world yet. Having been dropped by Juventus and sold to Everton, Kean's career has gone downhill since joining the Premier League.
He had potential to become one of the best Italian strikers with Juventus, but it looks like the Italian giants had plans of their own which didn't include him despite the fact that fans still hold hope that the 21-year old will return to Torino. During the 2019/20 season, he managed 33 appearances with the Merseyside club, netting in only two goals and registering only two assists. A season later, Everton could not find much use to the striker who had only made two Premier League goalless appearances. The only two goals came in the EFL Cup against Salford and Fleetwood. Carlo Ancelotti could not see him fit in the Everton squad, and so in October, Kean made the loan move to Paris to join French giants Paris-Saint Germain with whom he recorded one of his best seasons. He managed 41 appearances in all competitions in which he scored 17 goals and recorded a single assist. Now, after announcing their 26-man squad for the Euros, Roberto Mancini confirmed that Moise Kean will be left out of the travelling party for Italy. Kean can only hope that during the summer he will find a club that will take him on and show his full potential, as he is on his way to return to Everton from his loan move. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic & Dusan Vlahovic
Another two exceptional talents that compete in Serie A and will not be competing in this year's Euros. Serbia were beaten 5-3 on penalties by Scotland and so they too will be missing from this summer's tournament.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is one of the best midfielders that you will find in the Italian game and arguably also in Europe. He has been linked with clubs such as Juventus, Liverpool and Real Madrid for a while now, but whether the rumors are true or not, the 26-year old decided to stay loyal to Lazio so far. He would have surely complimented the striker who is on everyone's mind in Italy right now, Dusan Vlahovic. The 21-year old striker who scored 21 goals for Fiorentina during his breakout season in Serie A will not have an opportunity to shine this summer. He will probably spend the next few months going over transfer offers which are reported to be coming from Liverpool, Juventus and AC Milan. Jan Oblak & Josip Ilicic
At the time, Jan Oblak can be described as one of the best goalkeepers in the world, but unfortunately him and Slovenia did not managed to qualify for the Euros. They were really close to go on to compete in the play-off stages of qualifying, after they finished fourth in Group G with 14 points. North Macedonia finished with the same amount of points, but had a better goal average which saw them finish third and qualify to the play-offs through the Nations League.
Together with Oblak, we will also be missing out on the brilliance of Josip Ilicic and if Slovenia fail to qualify for the World Cup 2022, then we might never see Ilicic compete on such a level. The 33-year old is one of the best strikers in Italy and was named the 2019 Slovenian Footballer of the Year. At least, we are lucky enough to see him compete in Champions League football next season, after Atalanta managed to finish off the Serie A season in second. Kostas Manolas
Manolas is another great defender that we will be missing out on during the Euros. Greece were only four points away from achieving second place in Group J. Unfortunately, the Nations League did not play out in their favour either and so they did not manage to qualify for the play-offs.
Manolas used to play for Italy's capital, AS Roma from 2014 till 2019, before moving to Napoli. You might remember him for the 82nd minute goal he scored in the 3-0 win over Barcelona, in the 2018 Champions League Quarter Finals. Manolas is a great player who is a warrior on the pitch. He is determined to regain possession, is a great team player that always helps his teammates out and it's a shame that we will not be witnessing his defensive skills this summer.
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