For every generational talent to have left an indelible mark on a World Cup, there's another who has not been able to do likewise.
The quadrennial nature of FIFA's flagship tournament means only a clutch of players have been able to peak at the right time for past tournaments.
And that's just those who have actually played in a World Cup. The list is also lengthy when it comes to greats of the game who have never been able to grace one due to injury, suspension, bad timing or just the fact that by dint of geography they have represented nations with little chance of qualifying.
John Giles and Liam Brady stand out as examples of our own who unfortunately could not don the green jersey on the grandest stage that their talent richly deserved.
Ireland's friendly opponents on Thursday, Norway, will hope that Erling Haaland and Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard don't similarly miss out on future World Cups.
But for this upcoming 2022 edition, a trio of contemporary legends, who are all into their 30s, will be keen to leave a mark of their own on the competition's history for their own distinct reasons.
VIRGIL VAN DIJK'S MAJOR TOURNAMENT BOW
When you consider everything that Virgil van Dijk has achieved at club level, it's somewhat incredible to think that he has never represented his country at a major tournament before - if one doesn't apply that 'major' label to the UEFA Nations League finals.
That major tournament bow will come at the age of 31 when the Netherlands open their 2022 World Cup account against Senegal on 21 November.
Somewhat of a late bloomer, the Liverpool linchpin made his Dutch debut in October 2015, fifteen months after they had made an impressive run to the 2014 World Cup semi-finals.
However, Van Dijk's arrival into the senior fold coincided with a lean period for the Netherlands, which saw them miss out on both Euro 2016 and - six months after he signed for Liverpool - the last World Cup.
Indeed, this writer vividly remembers watching Van Dijk from the press box at the Aviva Stadium when Ireland met the Dutch in a pre-Euro 2016 friendly. It's somewhat incredible to think that it was the Oranje warming other national teams up for a major tournament rather than the other way round.
In fairness that was a far from vintage Dutch outfit but by the time Van Dijk and co were bolstered by a flourishing generation of talent led by Frenkie De Jong and Matthijs De Ligt, injury and a Covid-related delay would deal a cruel blow to a player who has been Netherlands captain since 2018.
Due to the pandemic, the last European Championship was postponed from its original summer 2020 slot to last June and July. But just weeks into the 2020-21 Premier League campaign, Jordan Pickford's lunging challenge on Van Dijk during the Merseyside derby would result in a serious knee injury and a lengthy lay-off that meant the centre-back would be unable to join his national team colleagues at Euro 2020.
This winter though, he is fully fit to lead his country out into a World Cup in which they happen to be in good form under Louis van Gaal and in a group that isn't particularly daunting.
Given he will be closing in on his 35th birthday when the next World Cup takes place, this one seems to have a 'now or never' feel for a player with Champions League and Premier League medals in his back pocket.
ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI'S WORLD CUP GOAL DROUGHT
One of the most prolific strikers of the modern era, Robert Lewandowski cannot be accused of underwhelming at international level.
The 34-year-old is far and away Poland's record goalscorer. His tally of 76 puts him almost 30 goals clear of the next player on the list, Wlodzimierz Lubanski (incidentally a scorer of five goals against Ireland during a 17-year international career), who set the previous high water mark all the way back in 1980.
The Barcelona striker has also made his presence felt at European Championships. In 2012, he scored the first goal of the tournament against Greece as his country co-hosted with Ukraine.
Four years later, he netted once in France as Poland got to the quarter-finals, before three goals made Euro 2020 memorable individually even if collectively the national team disappointed in a group stage exit.
But one thing that will drive Lewandowski this winter will be the desire to join the list of Polish players who have scored at a World Cup.
It's something he has yet to do. The last one in 2018 marked his debut at the tournament but it was one to forget as Poland slumped out of a somewhat inviting group featuring Colombia, Senegal and Japan.
He managed three shots per game without scoring that summer.
While the all-time Polish World Cup goals record will almost certainly be out of reach given Grzegorz Lato set it at 10, Lewandowski will at the bare minimum want to add his name to a list which includes other national team greats like Zbigniew Boniek and the late Kazimierz Deyna.
And in a group in which Poland will also battle Argentina and Mexico, he will certainly target the Saudi Arabia game as one in which he can potentially rack up goals.
THE CHERRY ON TOP FOR GARETH BALE
Whatever happens at the World Cup, Gareth Bale's Wales legacy is very much secure. All he has to do now is choose where he wants the statue or whether he would prefer a golf course renamed in his honour.
But the three goals he scored in the qualification play-offs earlier this year against Austria and Ukraine, which has ended a 64-year wait for Wales to get back to World Cup level, elevates his status further into immortality.
At 33, Bale is coming towards the twilight of a career which has seen him score in Champions League finals and lead the Welsh to the Euro 2016 semi-finals as well as return to the knockout stages of the tournament last summer.
And while Wales do have young talents and future World Cups will be expanded to 48 teams - albeit more for the benefit of other confederations outside UEFA - the Bale and Aaron Ramsey generation are coming towards the end and are unlikely to be involved in qualification for 2026 and beyond.
Therefore, Bale and Wales will want to make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to follow in the distant footsteps of the 1958 generation.
On that occasion, the Welsh took a similar route to the Irish side in Italia 90 by drawing all their group games against Mexico, Hungary and hosts Sweden. A win did arrive in a play-off against the Hungarians to decide which team advanced to the quarter-finals where a teenage Pele and Brazil awaited.
England, Iran and the United States await Wales this time and like Lewandowski, Bale will want to become a national team record goalscorer with a World Cup goal to his name.
The Welsh record at the tournament sits at two with Ivor Allchurch setting that tally and he is one of three players from that '58 team to score in that edition, including an all-time great in the giant shape of John Charles.
Bale holds a similarly larger than life status in Welsh eyes. Scoring at the 2022 World Cup and contributing to a win in the group stage would be the cherry on top.
Watch the Republic of Ireland v Norway live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player on Thursday from 7pm with live radio commentary on RTÉ Radio 1 Extra and follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app
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