Bale, Lewandowski and Van Dijk: A 'now or never' World Cup for a trio of modern greats

For every generational talent to have left an indelible mark on a World Cup, there's another who has not been able to do likewise.

The quadrennial nature of FIFA's flagship tournament means only a clutch of players have been able to peak at the right time for past tournaments.

And that's just those who have actually played in a World Cup. The list is also lengthy when it comes to greats of the game who have never been able to grace one due to injury, suspension, bad timing or just the fact that by dint of geography they have represented nations with little chance of qualifying.

John Giles and Liam Brady stand out as examples of our own who unfortunately could not don the green jersey on the grandest stage that their talent richly deserved.

Ireland's friendly opponents on Thursday, Norway, will hope that Erling Haaland and Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard don't similarly miss out on future World Cups.

But for this upcoming 2022 edition, a trio of contemporary legends, who are all into their 30s, will be keen to leave a mark of their own on the competition's history for their own distinct reasons.

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When you consider everything that Virgil van Dijk has achieved at club level, it's somewhat incredible to think that he has never represented his country at a major tournament before - if one doesn't apply that 'major' label to the UEFA Nations League finals.

That major tournament bow will come at the age of 31 when the Netherlands open their 2022 World Cup account against Senegal on 21 November.

So