Women's World Cup key absentees: Sauerbrunn, Mead, more - ESPN

In what was supposed to be a simple XI layout showing the best players not at the Women's World Cup — standard pre-tournament fare to whet the appetite for upcoming fun — the list of stars that had simply missed out on their place in the respective 23-player squads became much, much longer.

Soon a blank piece of paper had over 50 names on it, and that was before thinking of those whose nations failed to qualify — from Poland striker Ewa Pajor to Chile goalkeeper Christiane Endler and Austria midfielder Sarah Zadrazil. Scotland and Wales both missed out, meaning there will be no playmaker Caroline Weir, midfielder Erin Cuthbert or midfielder Jess Fishlock; without Mexico, there will be no defender Rebeca Bernal or midfielder Lizbeth Ovalle (to name just two from an increasingly strong El Tri team.)

Some were younger names who could have used the tournament to springboard them into the public consciousness, only to be overlooked for those with more experience — starlets like midfielders Riola Xhemaili (Switzerland) and Olivia Holdt (Denmark) or striker Romee Leuchter (Netherlands). At the other end of the scale, more experienced players have been left behind by Costa Rica with, among others, midfielder Shirley Cruz and playmaker Lixy Rodriguez denied their chance of representing Las Ticas at another World Cup; centre-back and former Italy captain, Sara Gama, also feels like a player who has been squeezed out in favour of youth.

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Then there are those who find themselves a victim of depth, as midfielder Narumi Miura can attest, the Japan midfield is a particularly hard one to break into with so much talent in the middle of the park for Nadeshiko. Similarly, defender Casey