9 Greatest Footballers Of All Time (Who Never Went To A World Cup)

Ryan Giggs may be one of the most underrated players of all time. Much like Paul Scholes he was never one to seek out the limelight, instead just focusing on getting the job done on the pitch for more than twenty years at Manchester United, where he won 13 Premier League and 2 Champions League titles and scored at least one goal in the first 21 seasons of the league's existence, a distinction that will likely never be equalled.

Giggs could've been the solution to the left midfield woes that plagued England's 'Golden Generation' had he been able to play for the nation he captained at schoolboy level. His birth in Cardiff to Welsh parents means that he would've only ever been able to represent Wales professionally, however, which he did 64 times between 1991 and 2007.

Until recently, where the emergence of Gareth Bale was the catalyst to them reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2016, Wales have arguably always been the weakest of the four 'home nations' that make up the United Kingdom. Their only World Cup appearance came all the way back in 1958 and Giggs' tenure in the side did nothing to change that.

Whilst he has captained a Great Britain side at the Olympics, Giggs' only shot at a World Cup will now be in a managerial capacity, having been appointed to oversee the national side in the wake of their failure to make it to Russia.