In national team football, replacing a specific player is more difficult than in club football. This is because in club football you just sign a contract, but in international football you have to wait for the next generation of players.
For some national teams, they can find replacements of this kind, especially in midfield. We'll look at five of those national teams.
The era of the Belgian golden generation is coming to an end and another generation of stars will take over. Belgium's biggest midfield star at the moment is Kevin De Bruyne, who has scored 140 goals and provided more than 200 assists in his career. The rising star in the Belgian midfield could replace Manchester City star Romeo Lavia. Everton's Amadou Onana is another midfielder who could become a Belgian star in the near future.
For Spain, their biggest midfield star at the moment is Sergio Busquets, but with the Barcelona legend aging, he could soon hand over to Liverpool youngster Bajcetic.
Marco Verratti is currently the best midfielder in Italy. However, age is starting to pursue this star midfielder, meaning that sooner or later he will have to retire to make room for the next generation of stars. Young from Juventus, Fabio Miretti is the perfect replacement for the Paris Saint-Germain star. As of now, the 19-year-old has provided three assists in 36 games in his career.
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Chelsea target Ruben Amorim
Sporting Lisbon manager Ruben Amorim is happy in Portugal and will not be considered for the vacant position at Chelsea, according to reports.
The Blues are having a bad season in the Premier League with Chelsea currently sitting 11th in the table as they prepare for the final seven games of the campaign.
Graham Potter was sacked earlier this month after winning just 12 of his 31 appearances in charge of the club, with Bruno Saltor taking over their 0-0 draw with Liverpool afterwards.
But Chelsea soon appointed former manager Frank Lampard as caretaker manager until the end of the season, with the Blues still looking for a long-term successor to Potter.
Lampard's time so far has been a disaster as Chelsea lost to Wolves, Real Madrid and Brighton in all three of the former England midfielder's appearances. It seems now highly unlikely that Lampard will be considered for the permanent job, with The Athletic's David Ornstein insisting their search for a new boss has 'shrunk'.
Ornstein wrote in his column:
“This process is currently in an intermediate stage and what started as a shortlist of five to ten candidates was reduced to a select few before the final stage.
"One possibility that should not be included in the final count is Ruben Amorim. Exploratory talks have taken place - Chelsea appreciate Sporting Lisbon and their coach - but he is happy at the Portuguese club Portugal and the Premier League side are focusing his attention elsewhere.
"Chelsea also spoke to Amorim upon Tuchel's departure, underscoring their enduring admiration for the 38-year-old as he continues to develop his career and build a solid reputation in football."
Ornstein said Chelsea will not take their selection process lightly this time around after they made the mistake of appointing Potter. He explained:
“They conduct several rounds of discussions and interviews before confirming the selection, which will be forwarded to Boehly and Eghbali for approval. Internally, the race is considered wide open and with a favorite candidate yet to emerge - but a decision is likely to be made in the coming weeks.
Julian Nagelsmann and Luis Enrique are believed to be two of the favorites for the job, with The Times claiming that Chelsea 'held initial face-to-face discussions with Nagelsmann on Thursday'.
They have also held "calls and meetings with other candidates, with sources from Stamford Bridge insisting that no preferred option has been identified yet".
Former Barcelona boss Enrique 'met' the Chelsea hierarchy when he flew to London for an interview before appointing Lampard as caretaker manager.
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