13 Liverpool stars' World Cup chances rated after Hugo Ekitike injury

Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike will miss the 2026 World Cup but up to 11 other Reds players may represent their countries at the summer tournament in North America

Hugo Ekitike will miss the 2026 World Cup (Image: Getty Images)

Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike will miss the 2026 World Cup after suffering an Achilles injury against his old club PSG in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Ekitike was regularly featuring for France in qualifiers, either off to bench or in place of a rotating Kylian Mbappe.

11 different nations qualified for the World Cup featuring the international allegiances of Liverpool players. Not all Reds players in the squad will make those coveted World Cup roster spots — mainly looking at the England players — but some are locks, including the three international captains.

Here is Liverpool.com's projection for which Reds players will go to the 2026 World Cup:

World Cup Captains

Andy Robertson, Scotland — Robertson is on his way out of Merseyside this summer, with the lung-busting left-back poised to join Tottenham Hotspur (should Spurs stay up) in the summer. He'll captain Scotland this summer at the World Cup, the Tartan Army's first appearance since 1998.

Wataru Endo, Japan — Endo has missed the second half of the Liverpool campaign, but Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu said he expects his captain to be fit for the World Cup. "In order to play in the World Cup, he, the club, and we all share the same understanding," he said of Endo's recovery.

Virgil van Dijk, Netherlands — The Dutch captain will lead out the Netherlands for a fourth straight international tournament after the Orange missed consecutive tournaments (2016 Euros and 2018 World Cup).

Wataru Endo for Japan at the 2022 World Cup(Image: Getty Images)

World Cup Locks

Alisson, Brazil — The Brazilian starting goalkeeper has held onto his starting spot for the South American giant since 2018, despite the presence of Ederson. 2026 will be Alisson's third World Cup.

Mohamed Salah, Egypt — Salah won't be a Liverpool player by the time the World Cup rolls around, but he will represent Egypt for a second time at the world's biggest stage.

Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo, Netherlands — At one point, both of these players seemed like locks for the Dutch starting lineup. Gakpo notably performs strongly for the national team — he was the top scorer at the 2024 Euros.

Cody Gakpo and Alexis Mac Allister meet at the 2022 World Cup(Image: Getty Images)

Florian Wirtz, Germany — Wirtz has enjoyed an up-and-down first season for Liverpool, but he's maintained his spot in the German lineup: he scored a brace in his last time out for his national team.

Alexander Isak, Sweden — Isak missed out on Sweden's European World Cup playoff through injury, but he will likely still start for his nation alongside fellow Premier League striker Viktor Gyokeres at the World Cup.

Ibrahima Konate, France — Konate will be Liverpool's lone French representative at the 2026 World Cup — he started the 2022 semifinal for his nation. He's no lock to re-sign with the Reds when his contract expires this summer.

Alexis Mac Allister, Argentina — Mac Allister, a World Cup-winning midfielder, will start for Argentina once again this summer.

World Cup Sleeper Candidates

Vitezslav Jaros, Czechia — The Liverpool loanee is currently out injured during his loan spell at Ajax. He made the Czech squad for the 2024 Euros and could sneak into the World Cup team if fit.

Jeremie Frimpong, Netherlands — Frimpong struggled for regular time with the Dutch, even when he was healthy and flying at Bayer Leverkusen. The Netherlands is loaded in defense, and the Liverpool defender will need to finish the year strong to clinch his place.

Curtis Jones, Joe Gomez, Rio Ngumoha, Harvey Elliott, England — Jones is the likeliest to make the England team, having been called up sparingly by Thomas Tuchel. The others are deep sleepers.