Fifa has refused to extend the deadline for countries to submit their 23-man squads for this summer’s World Cup finals.

Many World Cup coaches were keen for the Mayd 15 deadline to be pushed back closer to 9 June when the tournament kicks off.

But the idea has been turned down after a meeting of the World Cup organising committee on Thursday.

“The course of action is intended to afford the players concerned adequate recovery time, although injured players may be replaced after this date following a specific procedure,” said Fifa in a statement.

“Granting a larger squad and a later deadline for the definitive list of players would mean any players who were not then taken into account would be missing from their clubs.”

The 15 May deadline falls two days before the Champions League final.

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