The 2022 World Cup kicked-off on Sunday (November 20) and in this article, we detail all the key World Cup Fantasy team news ahead of Matchday 2.
A number of players picked up injuries in the first round of matches, while others who were doubts for Matchday 1 like Memphis Depay ($8.5m) did play a part in the opening group games.
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/world-cup-fantasy-2022-tips-the-ultimate-guide">Ultimate Guide to World Cup Fantasy 2022: Everything you need to know</a></li>
<li><a href="http://fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/world-cup-fantasy-2022-team-reveals/">Expert World Cup Fantasy team reveals</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>World Cup injury news: Who was injured in Matchday 1?</h2>
Ecuador&#8217;s hero in the World Cup&#8217;s curtain raiser against hosts Qatar was Enner Valencia ($6.5m).
The former West Ham United forward scored both goals in Ecuador&#8217;s 2-0 victory but was substituted after 77 minutes with a suspected knee problem.
Ecuador manager Gustavo Alfaro indicated post-match that his star man would be fit to play against the Netherlands.
Nottingham Forest and Senegal&#8217;s Cheikhou Kouyate ($6.5m) was stretchered off after landing awkwardly in the Lions of Teranga&#8217;s loss against the Netherlands.
It was initially thought the problem was with his ankle, however unconfirmed reports out of Africa suggested Kouyate had torn his <a href="https://sportnewsafrica.com/breve/mondial-2022-cheikhou-kouyate-devrait-manquer-les-deux-prochains-matchs-du-senegal/">thigh</a> and could miss the group stages.
Senegal&#8217;s Abdou Diallo ($4.0m) was also subbed off, with manager Aliou Cisse reporting a muscular problem.
Fourteen minutes of injury time at the end of the first half of the England v Iran match was required after medics dealt with goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand&#8217;s ($4.0m) accidental clash with teammate Majid Hosseini ($4.0m).
Iran&#8217;s number one sustained a broken nose and concussion as a result of the incident and required lengthy treatment, however the incident attracted criticism after Beiranvand played on for a short time, before being replaced by Hossein Hosseini ($4.0m).
Given the concussion, expect to see Hosseini &#8211; or one of Iran&#8217;s other reserve goalkeepers &#8211; between the sticks for Iran&#8217;s next match against Wales.
<h3>Kane &#8216;fine&#8217; after scan</h3>
The same game saw England defender Harry Maguire ($5.5m) taken off after 70 minutes.
The Manchester United man tweeted after the match: &#8220;I felt unwell in the second half so came off as a precaution. Looking forward to Friday.&#8221;
England&#8217;s main concern will be for star striker Harry Kane ($11.0m). It emerged on Tuesday (November 22) he was to undergo a scan on his right ankle on Wednesday after a heavy tackle in the second half.
Kane was seen with strapping on his ankle after the match but it was reported by the Times&#8217; <a href="https://twitter.com/henrywinter/status/1595396759169245184">Henry Winter</a> on Wednesday that Kane was &#8216;fine&#8217;.
And the BBC quoted England manager Gareth Southgate on Thursday: &#8220;Harry is fine. He has worked slightly separately from the group but all good for Friday night.&#8221;
He added that Maguire was feeling &#8216;much better&#8217; and was not suffering from concussion.
Meanwhile, midfielder James Maddison ($8.0m) is a doubt for England&#8217;s next game against the USA because of a knee complaint.
<div id="attachment_48886" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-48886" class="size-full wp-image-48886" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="641" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane-300x188.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane-768x481.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane-610x382.jpg 610w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-England-Kane-400x250.jpg 400w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Harry Kane. Picture by Getty Images.</div>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Horror injury mars Saudi Arabia&#8217;s shock win</h3>
Saudi Arabia recorded a famous 2-1 victory over one of the tournament favourites Argentina.
But they lost captain Salman Al-Faraj ($4.0m) before the end of the first half as a result of a hamstring injury.
And a horrific coming together between Yasser Al-Shahrani ($4.0m) and goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais ($4.0m) saw the former reportedly suffer a fractured jaw, broken facial bones and internal bleeding.
<h3>Lucas Hernandez&#8217;s tournament over</h3>
Many had tipped Theo Hernandez ($5.0m) to start at left-back for France in Qatar but it was instead brother Lucas Hernandez ($5.5m) who got the nod.
It was just 13 minutes until Theo got on the pitch though, as Lucas picked up a knee injury in the build up to Australia&#8217;s goal.
A rupture to his anterior cruciate ligament was confirmed after the match, a serious injury which will keep the Bayern Munich defender out of the tournament and facing a significant spell on the sidelines.
Another knee injury, this time for Denmark midfielder Thomas Delaney ($5.5m), also ended the player&#8217;s tournament.
It was thought to be less serious than Hernandez&#8217;s, however it should keep him out for about four weeks.
Mikkel Damsgaard was Delaney&#8217;s replacement in the 0-0 draw against Morocco.
Noussair Mazraoui ($5.0m) was another casualty in that game, being replaced on the 60 minute mark by Yahya Attiat-Allah ($3.5m).
Mazraoui was stretchered off, however the extent of what appeared to be a hip problem is currently unclear.
<h3>Neymar subbed off</h3>
Brazil forward Neymar ($10.5m) was substituted after 79 minutes of Brazil&#8217;s 2-0 win over Serbia after receiving treatment on his ankle.
Pictures emerged of his swollen <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/63751455">ankle</a> in the aftermath of the incident, leading to concerns he could face a period of time out of action.
Journalist <a href="https://twitter.com/Tim_Vickery/status/1596148391448555520">Tim Vickery</a> said on Friday that Neymar would miss the remainder of Brazil&#8217;s group phase matches and other outlets including the BBC have now reported the same.
Like Neymar, ankle ligament damage has also ruled out right-back Danilo ($5.5m) for the group stages.
<h2>World Cup injury news: How did injury doubts fare in Matchday 1?</h2>
Netherlands talisman Depay was not fit to start his country&#8217;s first game against Senegal on Monday (November 21), however he came on in the 62nd minute for Vincent Janssen ($6.5m).
Dutch fans will now hope the Barcelona forward will be fit for a starting spot in their next game against Ecuador on Friday.
French centre-back Raphael Varane ($6.0m) remained on the bench for France&#8217;s first game, having been suffering from a hamstring injury since October.
Manager Didier Deschamps indicated he was available prior to the match, so Matchday 2 may be Varane&#8217;s moment to be introduced to the tournament. Ibrahima Konate ($5.5m) was the man to replace him against Australia.
Canada&#8217;s Alphonso Davies ($5.0m) played the whole of Canada&#8217;s match against Belgium as he made his return from a hamstring injury suffered in the Bundesliga on November 5. His World Cup debut was not all positive though, as he missed a first-half penalty in the 1-0 loss.
Michy Batshuayi ($6.5m) deputised for Romelu Lukaku ($9.5m) as expected, as the former Chelsea and Mancheser United striker continued his recovery from a thigh injury.
Lukaku is expected to at least miss the Red Devils&#8217; next game, too.
<h2>World Cup injury news: Who&#8217;s out of Qatar?</h2>
The World Cup is the stage for the globe&#8217;s brightest footballing talents to showcase their skills.
But sadly it was not to be for many a top player.
Missing out before a ball was even kicked were Gini Wijnaldum, Paul Pogba, N&#8217;Golo Kante, Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Timo Werner.
Christopher Nkunku, Presnel Kimpembe, Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane and Jose Gaya were among those to make their respective nations&#8217; squads, only to end up withdrawing once they got to Qatar.
<div id="attachment_48912" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-48912" class="size-full wp-image-48912" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-Mane.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-Mane.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-Mane-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-Mane-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/World-Cup-Mane-610x407.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />No World Cup for Sadio Mane. Picture by Getty Images</div>
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<h2>Check out more World Cup and Premier League fantasy coverage</h2>
As well as the official <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/world-cup-fantasy-2022-tips-the-ultimate-guide">FIFA World Cup Fantasy</a> game Ultimate Guide, we’ve got coverage on <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/sky-sports-fantasy-football-world-cup-2022-tips-the-ultimate-guide-2">Sky Sports Fantasy Football World Cup</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/dream-team-world-cup-2022-tips-the-ultimate-guide">Dream Team World Cup</a> and <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/telegraph-fantasy-football-world-cup-2022-tips-the-ultimate-guide">Telegraph Fantasy Football World Cup</a> too.
And either side of the World Cup, we have <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fantasy-premier-league-ultimate-guide-fpl-tips">FPL</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/sky-fantasy-football-tips">Sky</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/category/sun-dream-team">Sun</a> and <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/category/telegraph">Telegraph</a> covered in-depth on a weekly basis.
Coupled with all our other cool features, including our multi-functional <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/my-team">My Team</a> tool, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta">Opta</a> <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta" aria-label="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/">stats</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/predictions">predicted points</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fantasy-premier-league-live-rank">live rank</a> and <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/tools">more</a>, Fantasy Football Hub is the place to be if you want to win your mini-leagues.
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