Expert Blogs

Turns out wearing the captain's armband for your national team is not quite what it's cracked up to be.

On Friday, England's Rio Ferdinand (knee) and Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast (elbow) reportedly joined the unlucky list of sidelined skippers at this World Cup, a list that already included Michael Essien (Ghana), Michael Ballack (Germany) and former England captain David Beckham.

Hopefully, this South African "curse of the captaincy" has done all of its evil work now.

If the football teams in question were listed on the stock market, they would have been severely downgraded in light of recent injuries. It's difficult to overstate the importance of these players for their sides. Ferdinand hasn't had his best season for Manchester United but was still Fabio Capello's most consistent performer at the heart of the defence. Ghana, without their star Essien. lack pace, guile and steel in the middle of the park. The same goes for Germany and Ballack, if you substitute "pace" with "experience" and "great passing". And Drogba, so strong and deadly as a sole striker, is the one player that could have elevated a decent Ivory Coast side to potential giant-killers in Group G.

What's more, the captains' influence transcends the 90 minutes on the pitch.

Ferdinand, for example, is a person of natural authority, well-respected and listened to by younger players such as Wayne Rooney or Aaron Lennon. It's the same with Drogba, Essien and Ballack, three men who acted as real leaders in the dressing room. Every team needs strong characters that can help the manager in terms of team discipline and instil a sense of togetherness. The latter factor is especially important at international level, where players from different clubs find themselves interned for two months and little to do aside from the actual matches.

As terrible as the injuries are for the players and teams concerned, they don't, however, necessarily diminish the appeal of the World Cup as a whole. One or two of these high-profile absences might even make the competition more attractive. I know this sounds counter-intuitive or possibly bonkers, but bear with me.

Obviously, there can be no doubt that Essien and Drogba will be missed by everyone, including friends, foes and football fans without specific loyalties. The fact that the competition will have to make do without two of its biggest three African stars  - only Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o is still standing, for now - doesn't help either. Drogba and Essien would have brought power, skill and the game's most valuable commodity to the table: goals.

But it's a very different story with Ferdinand and Ballack. Both of them were primarily entrusted to bring resilience and stability to the side. England will not quite be the same without Rio at the back and a German holding midfield without the Chelsea stalwart will have its work cut out.

In a nutshell, both teams will be more vulnerable at the back and a little less organised. This matters hugely at this level, where national managers don't have the time to drill tactical nuances and must, to varying degrees, rely on the experience and football brains of their charges. That's why the captaincy is such a big deal here, compared with club football, where the game is a little faster and more coherent.

Arsene Wenger's insistence that modern football has left leader-type players who shout at their colleagues, the opposition and the referee behind  - "there's simply no time for that anymore", said the Frenchman - is actually less true as far as national teams are concerned.

Germany and England, then, will be weaker sides but probably more exciting to watch, at both ends of the pitch. Fabio Capello won't feel confident enough in his back-line to plot Italian-style 1-0 wins.

Coach Jogi Low has the same problem: his Germany must attack more because they can defend less. Imagine Brazil without Lucio, Spain without Carles Puyol or Argentina without Walter Samuel. A shame for the players and respective countries, but I'd pay good money to see all high-scoring games that would follow.