National football teams have players who must play the most minutes before the World Cup 2022

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1. Germany

Germany is the team participating in the 2022 World Cup with the most minutes played in the top 5 European leagues since the beginning of the 2022–23 season.

Among the brightest candidates for the World Cup title, Germany is the team that suffered the most physical disadvantage. The 26 players of "Die Mannschaft," who were called up for the biggest football tournament, have played a total of 25,276 minutes since the beginning of the 2022–23 season. This number is higher than any other national team participating in the 2022 World Cup.

This is due to the fact that seven players have been called up for the World Cup 2022 to play for Bayern Munich, which has a busy schedule in many different competitions such as the UEFA Champions League, the Bundesliga, and the DFB-Pokal.

In addition, many other important players on the payrolls of Chelsea, Manchester City, or Dortmund also have a dense playing schedule.

2. England

With a total of 25,077 minutes played since the beginning of the 2022–23 season, the number of playing minutes for England players is in second place on this list.

25/26 players have been called up to play for England clubs in the 2022 World Cup, which must play on tight schedules due to England's tournament traditions. Harry Kane, England's captain, appeared exhausted from playing above his fitness level for Tottenham.

The other stars from Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, or Tottenham continuously play in the English Premier League, European Cup, or League Cup. 

3. France

France has the third-highest number of players in the 2022 World Cup. The stars of the defending world champion team have played a total of 23,429 minutes since the beginning of the 2022–23 season.

Most of the key players in the "Les Bleus" squad come from Real Madrid, PSG, or Bayern Munich. These are the big clubs and had compete in many different leagues since the beginning of the season.

4. Brazil

Brazil's stars have played 20,532 minutes since the start of the season. Only 4/26 players, including Éverton Ribeiro, Pedro, Weverton, and Dani Alves, do not play for clubs outside of Europe. In Europe, the remaining players will face stiff competition. Selecao's main squad, including Raphinha, Neymar, Alisson, Eder Militao, Casemiro, or Vinicius Jr., has also worked hard in Europe's top leagues since the beginning of the season.

5. Spain

Spain's stars have played 20,432 minutes since the start of the season.

The number of Spanish players who play for clubs in La Liga is up to 14. Particularly, the number for Atlético de Madrid is 3. Real Madrid, Valencia, Villareal, and Athletic Bilbao contribute two players each. With six players, Barcelona is the club with the most in Spain's squad. The schedules of Spain’s clubs are more comfortable than those of clubs in other countries.

As a result, Spanish players play fewer minutes than players from other national teams. 

6. Portugal

Portugal's 26 players have played a total of 18,554 minutes since the start of the season. Their pillars like Joao Cancelo, Bernardo Silva, and Bruno Fernandes have also worked hard since the beginning of the season. However, many other Portuguese stars are playing in the domestic league, where the competition density is not as high as that of England. Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal's main striker, has also not played much for Manchester United since the beginning of the season.

7. Argentina

Argentina's star squad, another top contender for the title, also has a total of 17,666 minutes played since the start of the season. Messi may have to play the most minutes before the World Cup in 2022. Other players have a slightly more comfortable schedule.

This can be seen as an advantage for Lionel Messi and his teammates on the journey to conquer the 2022 World Cup trophy.

Although fitness is an important factor for any team in a tournament, football always surprises football fans, and there are many other internal and external factors contributing to the performance of national football teams. As a result, predicting which team will win the World Cup in 2022 is difficult because all of them have a strong squad. The World Cup of 2022 promises to be an exciting and special tournament where stars of both classic and modern football will appear.