Tottenham midfielder Dejan Kulusevski has been omitted from Sweden’s final World Cup squad.
Kulusevski has been out since May 2025 with a serious knee injury sustained during Tottenham’s 2-0 defeat at home by Crystal Palace.
The 26-year-old has twice undergone surgery, most recently over the March international break, to correct the issue.
But he has not yet returned to training at Hotspur Way and has been completing his rehabilitation abroad.
Kulusevski had publicly stated that he was determined to feature for Sweden at the World Cup next month despite not having played a single minute of competitive football in over a year.
However, Spurs manager Roberto De Zerbi admitted last week that he would find it difficult to envisage Kulusevski playing a part in his first World Cup finals.
“I don’t know the situation well,” De Zerbi said. “For me, it’s difficult to understand how he can play at the World Cup if he didn’t play any games this season.”
Kulusevski’s World Cup hopes were already in doubt, but Sweden manager Graham Potter has now confirmed that the former Juventus playmaker has not been named in his 26-man squad for the tournament.
Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres and Liverpool striker Alexander Isak have both been named in the squad, as has Kulusevski’s Spurs team-mate Lucas Bergvall.
Sidelined: Dejan Kulusevski has not played for Tottenham since May 2025 (Getty Images)
The other Premier League-based players included are Brighton’s Yasin Ayari, Aston Villa defender Victor Lindelof, Leeds full-back Gabriel Gudmundsson and Nottingham Forest’s Anthony Elanga.
Sweden, who will be based out of Texas during the tournament, are in Group F along with Tunisia, the Netherlands and Japan.
They kick-start their campaign against Tunisia on June 15 before taking on the Netherlands five days later. They then finish the group against Japan.
