Two Liverpool stars facing seismic moment before returning for Man City match
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Liverpool FC NewsFeaturesLiverpool FCLiverpool returns to action on Saturday with an FA Cup meeting with Manchester City at the Etihad, but before then the final World Cup places will be decided in midweekFederico Chiesa and Alexander Isak could have their World Cup places confirmed on TuesdayTwo Liverpool players could earn a place at this summer’s World Cup on Tuesday as the European play-offs are concluded in what will mark a seismic moment in their international careers.March’s international break will see the identity of the final six teams confirmed, with Congo vs Jamaica and Iraq vs Bolivia to be played in the final World Cup Pathway fixtures. The last four European qualifiers will be decided on Tuesday.Among the potential participants are Sweden and Italy, both of which have players from Liverpool.
Alexander Isak will miss the Swede’s match against Poland through injury, although there are hopes the striker will be back in time to play for Liverpool after the international break.READ MORE: Man City dealt injury blow ahead of Liverpool game in FA Cup as 'not ideal' issue emergesREAD MORE: Jamie Carragher digs out ex-Liverpool stars with warning to Mohamed SalahIsak played in just four of Sweden’s World Cup qualifying matches due to various injuries and has not featured at any level since December after he suffered a broken leg in the win over Tottenham.Meanwhile, Federico Chiesa will hope Italy can secure passage to the tournament in North America.The former Juventus attacker was included in Gennaro Gattuso’s March squad but pulled out immediately after meeting up with the team as he was “deemed unavailable”.Chiesa was a vital part of the Italy squad between 2018 and 2024(Image: Getty)The Italians face Bosnia and Herzegovina in Zenica, aiming to qualify for their first World Cup since 2014.Italy finished second in qualifying behind a Norway side that won every match and is the favorite to qualify for the World Cup.Speaking about Chiesa’s decision to withdraw from the squad, Gattuso said: “All players are different," Gattuso explained. He went back home, and I have to accept that.Gattuso spoke about Chiesa's exit from the Italy squad(Image: Getty Images)“If a player tells me he’s not feeling well and is convinced of that, it’s useless to keep insisting.
Chiesa was called up, but he had a minor physical problem, and we decided not to include him in the squad.”Elsewhere, Kosovo hosts Turkey in Tuesday’s decisive play-offs, while its Czechia vs Denmark in the final game.All three home nations were left disappointed last week as Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales lost their semi-finals. Those results denied Conor Bradley, Kieran Morrison and Lewis Koumas a spot at next summer’s competition.The final international fixtures involving Liverpool players will all take place on Tuesday before they return to the club ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup tie against Manchester City.Choose Liverpool.com as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.Liverpool FCAlexander IsakFederico Chiesa