2026 will be a World Cup year, and Manchester United are bound to have plenty of representation at the 48-nation tournament.
The likes of Casemiro, Noussair Mazraoui and Patrick Dorgu are all expected to represent their countries during the World Cup.
There are also Manchester United players at risk of missing out on a place at the World Cup for multiple reasons, while players like Kobbie Mainoo and Diego Leon are hopeful of receiving their first-ever World Cup call.
Sadly, many great United players down the years never played at a World Cup, including George Best and Ryan Giggs. It’s an achievement for any professional footballer to represent their country on the world stage, and there’s nothing bigger than doing so at the World Cup finals.
It’s also becoming a worrying trend that United players are not being selected by Thomas Tuchel for the England squad, apart from Marcus Rashford, although he’s on loan at Barcelona.
Photo by Stuart Franklin – FIFA/FIFA via Getty ImagesRuben Amorim replaced Nani in 2010 World Cup squad
Before Ruben Amorim went into management, he had a long career as a professional footballer and made a total of 14 appearances for the Portugal national team.
The United head coach appeared for Portugal at the 2007 European Under-21 Championship and would have had to wait another three years before getting his first chance in the senior team.
Portugal went to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa under former United coach Carlos Queiroz, but his initial 23-man squad did not involve Amorim.
Amorim received his World Cup call-up as former United winger Nani suffered an injury to his left collarbone shortly before the tournament began. Â
However, Amorim went to the World Cup without having earned a senior cap for the national team. His debut came on June 15 against the Ivory Coast in the World Cup group stages. The match ended in a 0-0 draw as Amorim replaced Raul Meireles from the bench.
How many World Cups did Ruben Amorim go to with Portugal?
Although Amorim hardly featured at the 2010 World Cup, it wasn’t the only time he got a call-up.
Amorim was named among the Portugal squad for the World Cup again four years later, when he made one appearance at the tournament.
It was in Portugal’s final group stage match against Ghana, winning 2-1.
They were eliminated after the match due to goal difference.
That was Amorim’s final World Cup, meaning he went to two with Portugal throughout his career.