World Cup injury tracker: Neymar, Lamine Yamal and Christian Pulisic latest updates
Neymar has returned to limited training as he bids to return to fitness in time to feature for Brazil at what could be his last World Cup.
The superstar forward has been out of acting nursing a calf problem sustained while playing for Santos in May, and underwent tests on Monday to determine the progress of his recovery.
He is not expected to play in Brazil’s second Group C outing against Haiti on Friday, with the Selecao desperately needing an injection of attacking spark after putting in an underwhelming display in their opening 1-1 draw with Morocco.
Elsewhere, Lamine Yamal has stepped up his return to full fitness after making his return to action in Spain’s goalless draw with Cape Verde off the bench – will he start their next match against Saudi Arabia?
Canada, meanwhile, were without captain Alphonso Davies in their 1-1 opening-game draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina, while US star Christian Pulisic missed their win over Australia after being withdrawn at half-time from their opening triumph against Paraguay. England have also suffered their first casualty of the tournament after Tino Livramento was forced to withdraw from the squad.
See below for a full list of key injuries at this year’s World Cup.
Neymar (Brazil)
Neymar sustained a grade two calf injury just three weeks out from the tournament.
The 34-year-old missed the opening match against Morocco and underwent tests on Monday to determine the progress of his recovery.
He has only just returned to partial training with Brazil and did not feature against Haiti on Friday in Philadelphia. It is uncertain if he will be available to face Scotland in their final group game, but after beating Haiti he should still get a shot to play in the knockouts.
Lamine Yamal (Spain)
The 18-year-old star injured his left hamstring and had been out since 22 April, but he has now made his return to action after coming off the bench in Spain’s goalless draw with Cape Verde.
Spain boss Luis de la Fuente insisted he was in “perfect condition” with Yamal no doubt eager to start for the European champions against Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Fellow Spain winger Nico Williams also returned off the bench against Cape Verde, as did Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino who had been sidelined for much of the year so far.
Christian Pulisic (United States)
The co-hosts’ star player shone in the first-half of USA’s 4-1 win against Paraguay in Los Angeles but was withdrawn by Mauricio Pochettino at half-time due to a calf problem.
The US remained without Pulisic for their win over Australia, which sealed their place in the knockout stages.
“It was impossible for him today to play,” Pochettino said. “We hope that next game he will be available but if we want to win the competition we need the whole team.
“All of the players need to be important but of course Christian is one of the best players in the world and I hope that he can recover as soon as possible and can show it on the pitch and help the team.”
The US play Turkey in their final group outing next Friday.
Declan Rice (England)
England are facing a series of injury concerns ahead of their second World Cup game against Ghana on Tuesday, with Declan Rice leading that list.
He was replaced with a hamstring injury in their opener against Croatia, with Thomas Tuchel insisting it is a minor issue.
“Declan had some unusual ball losses and I saw a bit of discomfort,” Tuchel said. “I asked him, and he pointed directly to his lower back, upper hamstring, that he feels the discomfort.
“I didn’t want to take any risk, so I decided to take Declan off – which I never wanted to do – but it was the moment to protect him, and I think Reece James did so well to replace him in the central midfield. [Rice] had a fantastic game, so I hope it’s nothing more, and he just reassured me at the end: ‘It’s good, and I know the discomfort’. We will take care of it, and this is nothing big to worry about.”
Bukayo Saka (England)
Saka has been managing a long-term Achilles problem and while he was able to feature off the bench against Croatia, Tuchel says he will not rush things with the Arsenal winger, with Gunners team-mate Noni Madueke likely to start ahead of him against Ghana.
“Bukayo is ready and will get more and more ready,” Tuchel said after the win over Croatia. “Once we get to the last game in the group it is the moment. He was strong yesterday [Tuesday] in training in small spaces. It’s just a matter of if the game is open and up and down.”
Harry Kane (England)
Kane suffered a bout of cramp late in the Croatia clash and wore strapping in training, which sparked concerns of a problem.
However, it is not expected to threaten his involvement in the Ghana game as he chases the Golden Boot, having scored a brace in the opener.
Marcus Rashford (England)
Rashford complained of muscle tightness after their World Cup opener and he is being monitored ahead of England’s next match.
The winger netted off the bench against Croatia to seal the 4-2 win.
Alphonso Davies (Canada)
Canada’s captain and star player had to sit out their 1-1 draw against Bosnia on Friday in Toronto but returned to the bench for their 6-0 thrashing of Qatar in Vancouver on Thursday.
He didn’t make a cameo but it will be hoped he can feature in their final group outing against Switzerland.
Bayern Munich’s Davies sustained a hamstring injury in May and the team remained tight-lipped about his recovery during Tuesday’s training session.
“Mentally, it was very draining, suffering these injuries,” Davies told reporters ahead of Canada’s opener. “I was going into a hole where I was doubting myself, but I had that time off (during the injuries) and I thought about why I’m doing this, and how important this is to me.”
Ruben Dias (Portugal)
Manchester City defender Dias missed Portugal’s opener against DR Congo in a hefty blow for Roberto Martinez’s side.
He has been dealing with an injury in training in recent days and Martinez confirmed that Portugal “won’t take any risks” against the African nation, with Dias still “not fully fit”.
Tino Livramento (England)
England have been dealt their first real injury blow of the campaign after Newcastle defender Livramento was ruled out for the tournament with a calf injury.
Tuchel could have called up a raft of other full-back options, including Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold, Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly and Newcastle’s Lewis Hall. However the England manager chose to bring Trevoh Chalobah, a centre-back, into the fold.
Chalobah will not be available in England’s opener against Croatia.
Ismael Kone
Canada midfielder Ismael Kone has undergone successful surgery to repair severe fractures in his lower left leg, after sustaining a horror injury during Thursday’s match against Qatar.
The injury, which involved both the tibia and fibula bones, means the 24-year-old will miss the remainder of the Fifa World Cup 2026 campaign.
Canada coach Jesse Marsch described the immediate aftermath, recalling he “could hear the bone snap.”
Mohammed Kudus (Ghana)
Another confirmed absentee, Tottenham forward Kudus will miss the World Cup because of a quadricep injury.
The 25-year-old has not featured since January, in a blow to Ghana – who are in England’s group.
Wataru Endo (Japan)
Liverpool defensive midfielder Endo injured his foot in February and has been ruled out of the World Cup – and the 33-year-old has immediately retired from international duty.
“Since my injury, I’ve done everything I possibly could up to this point, so I have no regrets whatsoever,” he said. “From here on, I’ll be cheering for the Japan national team as one of the fans.”
Jurrien Timber (Netherlands)
The Arsenal defender had been out since March due to a groin problem, but came on in the second half of the Champions League final against PSG.
However, the Dutch FA believe Timber had “not recovered sufficiently” to take part in the tournament in a “medically responsible manner.”
As such, Timber has left the Dutch squad and been ruled out of the World Cup.
Lennart Karl (Germany)
The 18-year-old was expected to be one of the young stars of this tournament but suffered a torn thigh muscle in training, ruling him out of the World Cup.
Billy Gilmour (Scotland)
It was heartbreak for Scotland’s creative midfielder Gilmour, as he suffered an injury in their warm-up victory against Curacao.
The 24-year-old Napoli player picked up a knee injury in the 4-1 win, with teammate Scott McTominay saying he was “absolutely devastated” by the news.
Gilmour was, however, in camp to support his teammates ahead of their opening win against Haiti on Saturday.
