Belgium drop Koen Casteels as more squads are finalised

Sport360 staff 16:55 04/06/2014
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  • Unlucky: Koen Casteels has missed out on a place in the Belgium squad.

    Koen Casteels has been dropped from Belgium's World Cup squad after the third-choice goalkeeper failed to recover from a broken bone in his leg.

    Coach Marc Wilmots had waited until the last possible moment to submit his final 23-man group to head to Brazil as he waited on Hoffenheim stopper Casteels, but has now confirmed Sammy Bossut of Zulte-Waregem will go in his place.

    Wilmots originally submitted a 24-man group with the names of both goalkeepers – who sit behind Thibaut Courtois and Simon Mignolet in the pecking order – but confirmed on Tuesday that only Bossut would travel.

    "The 23-man list was submitted to FIFA yesterday evening (Monday) before midnight and included the name of Koen Casteels," said a statement on the Federation's website.

    "However, a test undertaken by Casteels today showed that the goalkeeper has not sufficiently recovered in time to take part in the World Cup."

    Casteels suffered a fractured tibia in a Bundesliga match on April 6.

    Bossut has only one cap to his name, earned last week against Luxembourg.

    The rest of the Belgian squad will be that announced by Wilmots 11 days ago, with veteran Club Brugge midfielder Timmy Simons and Radja Nainggolan of Roma the most notable absentees, along with injured Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke.

    Belgium squad

    Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Atletico Madrid/ESP, on loan from Chelsea/ENG), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool/ENG), Sammy Bossut (Zulte-Waregem)
    Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Atletico Madrid/ESP), Anthony Vanden Borre (Anderlecht), Daniel Van Buyten (Bayern Munich/GER), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City/ENG), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham/ENG), Thomas Vermaelen (Arsenal/ENG), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit Saint Petersburg/RUS), Laurent Ciman (Standard Liege)
    Midfielders: Axel Witsel (Zenit Saint Petersburg/RUS), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United/ENG), Steven Defour (FC Porto/POR), Moussa Dembele, Nacer Chadli (both Tottenham Hotspur/ENG), Kevin De Bruyne (Wolfsburg/GER)
    Forwards: Romelu Lukaku (Everton/ENG, on loan from Chelsea/ENG), Divock Origi (Lille/FRA), Eden Hazard (Chelsea/ENG), Kevin Mirallas (Everton/ENG), Dries Mertens (Napoli/ITA), Adnan Januzaj (Manchester United/ENG)

    SQUADS IN BRIEF

    Australia

    Australian head coach Ange Postecoglou brought World Cup heartache to four players, including playmaker Tom Rogic, in unveiling his definitive 23-man squad, saying Tuesday all his choices were meticulously thought out.

    As Monday's deadline expired, Postecoglou had broken the news to a squad captained by midfielder Mile Jedinak that Rogic, Mark Birighitti, Josh Kennedy and Luke Wilkshire would be jettisoned.

    Veterans Tim Cahill, Mark Bresciano and Mark Milligan meanwhile become the first players to represent the Socceroos at three World Cup tournaments, having been involved in the 2006 and 2010 campaigns.

    Postecoglou said he had thought long and hard about his choices – which were unexpected, at least in the case of Wilkshire.

    Squad

    Goalkeepers: Mathew Ryan (Club Brugge/BEL), Mitchell Langerak (Borussia Dortmund/GER), Eugene Galekovic (Adelaide United) 
    Defenders: Ivan Franjic (Brisbane Roar), Jason Davidson (Heracles Almelo/NED), Matthew Spiranovic (Western Sydney Wanderers), Bailey Wright (Preston North End/ENG), Alex Wilkinson (Jeonbuk Motors/KOR), Ryan McGowan (Shandong Luneng/CHN) 
    Midfielders: Mile Jedinak (Crystal Palace/ENG), Mark Milligan (Melbourne Victory), James Holland (Austria Vienna/AUT), Massimo Luongo (Swindon Town/ENG), Oliver Bozanic (Luzern/SUI), Matt McKay (Brisbane Roar), Mark Bresciano (Al-Gharafa/QAT) 
    Forwards: Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls/USA), Dario Vidosic (Sion/SUI), Tommy Oar (FC Utrecht/NED), James Troisi (Melbourne Victory), Ben Halloran (Fortuna Duesseldorf/GER), Adam Taggart (Newcastle Jets), Mathew Leckie (FSV Frankfurt/GER)

    Honduras

    Arnold Peralta's World Cup dream is over after the Honduras midfielder was ruled out of the Brazil finals with a thigh injury.

    The 25-year-old Rangers player had been named in Coach Luis Fernando Suarez's 23-man squad for the World Cup which was announced on May 6 but has now been replaced by Real Espana's Edder Delgado.

    Having been unable to prove his fitness in time, Peralta has been omitted from Honduras' squad for the tournament.

    Squad

    Goalkeepers: Noel Valladares, Donis Escober (Olimpia), Luis Lopez (Real Espana)
    Defenders: Edder Delgado (Real Espana), Maynor Figueroa (Hull City/ENG), Victor Bernardez (San Jose/USA), Emilio Izaguirre (Celtic/SCO), Osman Chavez (Qingdao/CHN), Juan Carlos Garcia (Wigan Athletic/ENG), Brayan Beckeles (Olimpia), Juan Pablo Montes (Motagua)
    Midfielders: Boniek Garcia (Houston Dynamo/USA), Andy Najar (Anderlecht/BEL), Roger Espinoza (Wigan Athletic/ENG), Wilson Palacios (Stoke City/ENG), Marvin Chavez (Colorado Rapids/USA), Jorge Claros (Motagua), Luis Garrido (Olimpia), Mario Martinez (Real Espana)
    Forwards: Jerry Bengtson (New England/USA), Jerry Palacios (Alajuelense/CRA), Carlo Costly (Real Espana), Rony Martinez (Real Sociedad/ESP)

    Japan

    Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni and his players are relying on the team's never-say-die attitude to spur them on at the World Cup, after the head coach announced the final squad earlier this week.

    Japan are prepping themselves to do things the hard way in Brazil as they have a history of falling behind early in games.

    A day after battling from behind for a 3-1 victory over World Cup-bound Costa Rica, the Blue Samurai were taking stock of a belief built over four years of hard work since a run to the last 16 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

    Squad 

    Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima (Standard Liege/BEL), Shusaku Nishikawa (Urawa Reds), Shuichi Gonda (FC Tokyo)
    Defenders: Yasuyuki Konno (Gamba Osaka), Masahiko Inoha (Jubilo Iwata), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter/ITA), Masato Morishige (FC Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Schalke 04/GER), Maya Yoshida (Southampton/ENG), Hiroki Sakai (Hannover 96/GER), Gotoku Sakai (VfB Stuttgart/GER)
    Midfielders: Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Makoto Hasebe (Nuremberg/GER), Toshihiro Aoyama (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka), Keisuke Honda (AC Milan/ITA), Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United/ENG)
    Forwards: Yoshito Okubo (Kawasaki Frontale), Shinji Okazaki (FSV Mainz/GER), Hiroshi Kiyotake (Nuremberg/GER), Yoichiro Kakitani (Cerezo Osaka), Manabu Saito (Yokohama F-Marinos), Yuya Osako (Munich 1860/GER)

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