English Premier League clubs prepare for Afcon exodus
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Everton manager David Moyes applauding the fans after their 3-0 English Premier League win over Nottingham Forest at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Dec 6.
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LONDON – Players heading to the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) should depart with the blessings of their respective clubs, according to Everton manager David Moyes, but his viewpoint might not be shared by rivals who face weeks without some of their top names.
The majority of English Premier League clubs will be impacted in some way by the 24-nation tournament that kicks off in Morocco on Dec 21 and concludes on Jan 18.
With no midseason break in the English top flight, six rounds of fixtures are scheduled during Afcon as well as the FA Cup third round and League Cup quarter-finals.
Newly promoted Sunderland, who have defied expectations so far, could be the worst-affected club with six players going to the tournament, while the likes of Fulham, Manchester United, Burnley and Crystal Palace will also have to make do without some key personnel.
Moyes is set to lose Senegal duo Idrissa Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye.
“This is their last week, as is the case with many other football clubs, and we have to completely respect the tournament,” the Scot said ahead of his team’s clash with Chelsea on Dec 13.
“The players have to go and play for their countries, and rightly so. It is a great thing that they have been selected for their countries. We wish them well.”
United are still sweating on the availability of Cameroon’s Bryan Mbeumo, Morocco’s Noussair Mazraoui and Ivory Coast’s Amad Diallo for their Premier League match at home to Bournemouth on Dec 15, as that is the day players are supposed to report for international duty.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be the same situation (when each player goes to Afcon),” manager Ruben Amorim said on Dec 12. “Every national team has their ideas about when they want the players.”
More than 40 England-based players are set to be at the Afcon, including Fulham’s influential Nigerian trio Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey and Samuel Chukwueze.
“We knew it was going to happen. We will not panic about its impact. But we are talking about three starting players,” Fulham manager Marco Silva said.
Sunderland’s squad depth will be fully tested as they will lose Bertrand Traore (Burkina Faso), Arthur Masuaku and Noah Sadiki (DR Congo), Reinildo (Mozambique) and Chemsdine Talbi (Morocco).
Senegal’s Habib Diarra could also go despite having not played since September because of injury.
“The decision is with the national team, if they want to select the player, they can. It’s not our decision,” manager Regis le Bris said.
One inadvertent consequence of the Afcon could be to quieten the storm around Liverpool’s talisman Mohamed Salah, who will be heading for international duty with Egypt. REUTERS
