Blackpool's Kenny Dougall discovers World Cup fate as Australia announce their 26-man squad

The midfielder has been left out of the Australian squad for the winter competition in Qatar, which gets underway later this month.

It will come as a major blow to the 29-year-old, who was a regular member of Graham Arnold’s squad during the Socceroos’ qualification campaign.

However, the writing was on the wall for Dougall when he was omitted from the Australian setup for their back-to-back friendlies against New Zealand in September.

It means Theo Corbeanu is Blackpool’s last hope of becoming the first Seasider to feature at a World Cup since Alan Ball in 1966.

Canada, who are preparing for their first World Cup since 1986, are due to formally announce their squad on Sunday, November 13.

Canada boss John Herdman previously admitted "it doesn't take a rocket scientist" to figure out who the key players for Canada will be and there are unlikely to be any major surprises.

Despite being only 20, Corbeanu has regularly featured in the Canadian squad in recent times and has scored twice in his first seven caps.

However, the winger has had limited game time for the Seasiders over recent weeks which may have harmed his chances.

According to media reports in Canada, it’s likely to be a toss-up between Corbeanu and former Chelsea man Ike Ugbo who is handed one of the forward roles.

Ugbo, now with French side Troyes, has been capped eight times by his country and has scored once in 14 appearances for his club side this season.

Unlike many nations, Herdman’s side play two friendlies against Bahrain and Japan on November 11 and November 17 respectively before the World Cup gets underway a week later.

However, the Canadian squad predominantly features North American-based players who are out of season as the friendlies fall outside the international window.

Canada have been drawn in a group with Croatia, Belgium and Morocco.

The tournament kicks off on November 20 and runs until December 18. The Championship breaks for a month from November 13 following the games against Middlesbrough and Wigan Athletic.