The reason for Diomande's World Cup absence stems from Sporting

Ousmane Diomande, one of Sporting's seven internationals at the World Cup, is still awaiting his debut in the tournament held across Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The 22-year-old center-back missed Ivory Coast's opening match (a 1-0 victory over Ecuador), with his absence attributed to a right thigh muscle injury that has plagued him since the end of the Portuguese season. The defender is still working his way back to full fitness but is targeting minutes against Germany on Saturday.

Diomande is a regular call-up for Emerse Faé's squad but hasn't been a starter for the national team coach. This could change during the World Cup, as a growing belief suggests the Sporting player is the strongest center-back in the Ivorian squad. The defensive pairing in their World Cup opener featured Emmanuel Agbadou of Besiktas and Wilfried Singo, who also plays in Turkey for Galatasaray.

Towards the end of Sporting's season, Diomande was battling a muscle issue that kept him out of the starting lineup for the Portuguese Cup final against Torreense (a 2-1 extra-time loss) and also sidelined him for the final league match against Gil Vicente (a 3-0 win). Once with the national team, he only played 15 minutes in a friendly against France, contributing to their 2-1 victory.

The muscle injury continues to trouble the center-back, but Ivorian expectations are high that he could see playing time against Germany on Saturday, and even more so against Curaçao on the 25th in the final match of Group 3. Ivory Coast currently sits in second place with 3 points, level with group leaders Germany. Once in action, Diomande will be showcasing his talents to a market that has already taken notice.