There are two players for each national team who could be World Cup winners without playing a single minute of the tournament in Qatar. For Argentina it would be goalkeepers Rulli and Armani, as well as Areola and Karim Benzema for France.
A historic final between Argentina and France is looming in Qatar, with Messi and Mbappe in the spotlight. Moreover, some players could win the same title without playing a single minute in this controversial World Cup.
This is the case of three of the goalkeepers of both teams. They are the Argentinians Geronimo Rulli and Franco Armani, who have not had a chance in the face of the good level shown by Dibu Martinez.
For France, Lloris is also a key player in goal. For that reason, Areola had no chance. Karim Benzema is the fourth player in contention to win the World Cup without having played a single match. Benzema left the squad before kick-off due to injury. However, the Real Madrid striker has been invited to return for the final.
There have been other similar cases in history, such as that of Ronaldo Nazario in 1994, when he was only 17 years old. In the Spanish national team, in 2010, Pepe Reina, Victor Valdes and Raul Albiol did not play in Vicente del Bosque's team.