5 players from Germany's 2014 World Cup-winning squad who are unlikely to feature in Russia 2018.

#1. Mario Gotze

The moment Gotze became part of footballing history.

The Golden Boy of German football, great things were expected of Mario Gotze and his rise from the Dortmund youth academy to first team success was one of the most exciting and promising sights German football has seen in a long time. Touted to be the next global superstar from Germany, Gotze made the shocking switch to Bavarian rivals Bayern and his career took a downward slope from there on.

His talent was never doubted, but his inability to adapt to Pep Guardiola's demands as well as a string of injury problems marked the beginning of the young Germans slump. Frustration grew as he failed to make the cut at Guardiola's Bayern and doubts started forming about his ability. He had a mixed first season, but he had Joachim Low's faith and he made the World Cup squad and went on to score the goal that won Germany the World Cup with just eight minutes left in extra-time, in the final.

His return to club football marked the beginning of a very frustrating period with frequent injuries further putting a halt to his career development at Bayern. Finally, in the summer of 2016, he made his return to his boyhood club, Borussia Dortmund, looking to rebuild his reputation. But bad luck followed Gotze. Analysed with a metabolic disorder, Gotze was sidelined for an indefinite period.

He made his return in July 2017 and has been playing reasonably well since, but with Dortmund not being able to churn out results in the League and Europe, Gotze might be overlooked for the World Cup considering the fact that Germany have a such an array of talent to pick from. There are multiple players who play in Gotze's role, performing incredibly well across Europe.

Will the Man of the Match of the 2014 World Cup Final make it to Russia 2018?