Portugal rocked as Nani joins ever-growing list of World Cup casualties
Portugal have been rocked by the news that Nani will miss the World Cup with injury.
The Manchester United winger injured his shoulder during training last week, and scans later revealed the injury to be worse than first feared.
Coach Carlos Queiroz said: “It’s very sad. But the most important thing is the cohesion of the team and that we all play together to get over it.
“We are a team, we play united with a lot of ambition. This is what I want.
“Nani is in pain. We carried out tests and the upshot is that he is not fit to compete.”
The 23-year-old is the latest member of an ever-growing list of players that will miss the tournament due to injury; including Old Trafford team-mate Rio Ferdinand and veteran Germany and Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack.
Benfica’s Ruben Amorim has been named as Nani’s replacement in the 23-man squad.
Portugal open their campaign on June 15 against the Ivory Coast and are 5/4 favourites with SkyBet to win. Sven-Goran Eriksson's side are 27/10 with bwin, while the draw is 23/10 with both Bet365, StanJames and Ladbrokes.