Sheamus Removed From John Cena Final Match Tournament With Injury, Top Replacements

WWE announced Friday that Sheamus has been removed from the Last Time Is Now tournament to determine John Cena's final opponent due to not being medically cleared as a result of a shoulder injury.

Sheamus was victorious in the first round of the 16-man tournament, beating Shinsuke Nakamura to advance to the quarterfinals.

On Monday night's episode of Raw, Sheamus and Rey Mysterio came to Cena's defense when he was surrounded by Judgment Day members Dominik Mysterio, Finn Balor and JD McDonagh.

That led to a six-man tag team match, which Cena, Sheamus and Rey won in what was the final Raw match of Cena's illustrious career.

Sheamus has a ton of history with Cena as both an opponent and an ally. In fact, Sheamus won his first-ever WWE Championship by beating Cena in a tables match at TLC 2009.

While The Celtic Warrior would have been a strong choice as Cena's final opponent at Saturday Night's Main Event in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 13, he is no longer in the running due to injury.

In terms of a potential replacement, WWE could go with someone who already lost in the first round of the First Time Is Now tournament, such as Nakamura, Damian Priest, The Miz or Je'Von Evans, or one of the two surprise entrants in the tourney in former WWE and current TNA stars Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler.

There are still two first-round matchups in the form of Carmelo Hayes vs. Bronson Reed and Balor vs. Penta remaining as well, so the losers of those matches would also be options.

However, if WWE wants to go with someone who was not already in the tournament, a wrestler with past ties to Cena could make sense, such as Randy Orton, AJ Styles, CM Punk or R-Truth.

If the decision is left up to Cena, he would perhaps choose a future star from NXT since he announced that the Dec. 13 Saturday Night's Main Event will feature an undercard of exhibition matches between NXT wrestlers and main roster stars.

Oba Femi, Trick Williams, Ricky Saints and Ethan Page are a few of the best NXT has to offer and potential fits for the tournament.

The best pick in terms of satisfying multiple aspects may be Joe Hendry, who is currently in NXT after recently joining WWE on a full-time basis following his tenure with TNA.

Hendry openly discussed his desire to have a match against Cena in the past, and he could be a surprise entry into the tournament, much like he was Orton's surprise opponent at WrestleMania 41 earlier this year.

Sheamus' removal from the tournament takes a big-time contender out of the picture, but WWE has more than enough talent to find a suitable replacement who the fans will embrace.