String of national team withdrawals: Yamal, Guirassy, Sesko, Chiesa...

It's that time of the year when players leave their clubs and join their national teams, which will either fight for the remaining 2026 FIFA World Cup tickets, their honour, or simply play some friendly clashes.

However, the international break upon us will be interspersed with numerous superstars' withdrawals and absences from their respective national teams. And the list of those who have pulled out is getting longer by the day.

First and foremost, Lamine Yamal won't help Spain in their decisive battles against Georgia and Turkey, in which they'll need a single win to secure their spot at the World Cup.

Yamal stuns Spain and withdraws from national team; 'I'm shocked!' admits head coach

Barcelona wonderkid sparked a scandal after undergoing a medical procedure without informing the national team's medical staff, prompting even the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and La Furia boss Luis de la Fuente to speak out publicly and express their disbelief.

Thirteen Borussia Dortmund players are currently with their respective national teams, but Serhou Guirassy and Ramy Bensebaini aren't among them.

The Guinean striker clearly needs rest, so he opted to stay in Germany and miss the National Elephants' friendly clashes against Togo and Niger. On the other hand, the Algerian had an issue with a back injury, and given that the Desert Foxes had already secured their place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, he decided to sit out his team's friendlies against Zimbabwe and Saudi Arabia.

In the 85th minute of Man United's clash against Tottenham, the Red Devils' striker Benjamin Sesko limped off because of a knee injury. The initial prognosis from Old Trafford is favourable, as it was reportedly just a knock, but Sesko will still miss Slovenia's upcoming qualifying matches against Kosovo and Sweden, which won't be too much of a problem, as the popular Little Dragons sit at the bottom of their group, without a chance to qualify for the WC.

Italy will fight the decisive battles in the qualifiers and continue the race for the top spot in Group I against Norway without Moise Kean and Federico Chiesa.

And while the former was forced to withdraw due to an injury - Bologna's Nicolo Cambiaghi replaced him - the latter rejected a call-up. Moreover, the Azzurri boss, Gennaro Gattuso, revealed that it wasn't the first time the Liverpool forward had turned down the national team.

"I often talk to him. We have to respect the decisions and problems that each of us has. We know well what we tell each other, and I must respect what the player tells me. I can't say anything else. It's already the fourth or fifth time that I'm explaining this," the strategist said in the press conference via Football Italia.

England have been the first European national team to book a ticket for North America, so the absences will hurt them the least. Either way, Newcastle's duo, Anthony Gordon and Nick Pope, and Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi were all forced to withdraw from Thomas Tuchel's squad because of injuries. The German reacted urgently by calling up Chelsea's Trevoh Chalobah and James Trafford of Man City as replacements.

Randal Kolo Muani broke his jaw against Man United and won't be at Didier Deschamps' disposal for the clashes France play against Ukraine and Azerbaijan. The forward was lucky to avoid surgery, but still needed time to fully recover.

Portugal are practically one point away from qualifying for the World Cup, but they'll have to win it in duels against the Republic of Ireland and Armenia without Pedro Neto. Chelsea winger picked up a groin injury, which caused him to turn down Roberto Martinez's call-up.

Finally, the Netherlands also failed to avoid troubles, as they have been left without the striker Wout Weghorst. The former United player has recently experienced back problems and hasn't fully recovered, so the Oranje boss, Ronald Koeman, wanted to avoid any risks, calling up Strasbourg captain Emmanuel Emegha as a backup option.

Is a busy schedule taking its toll, or is this vast number of injuries and absences just an anomaly?