Vladimír Darida

Brings experience in central roles

Darida is heading to the World Cup as one of Czechia's most experienced players and a potential starter in midfield.

Analysis: Darida's inclusion in the squad completes one of the more remarkable stories of Czechia's qualification campaign, as the veteran midfielder came out of international retirement earlier this year to help the team reach the World Cup. The former captain, who has spent over a decade playing at a high level in Germany and Greece, offers leadership and tactical discipline more than explosive production at this stage of his career, though he remains capable of producing across several statistical categories. Darida can contribute through ball recoveries, intelligent positioning and his ability to keep possession under pressure. His versatility allows him to fill multiple midfield roles, whether as a deeper distributor or a hard-working box-to-box option. Although he might not play the full 90 minutes in every match, he holds decent chances of making the initial lineup.