AFCON 2023
Complete list of Premier League players who will play the AFCON 2023
With the African Cup of Nations getting underway in Ivory Coast today, we look at the key Premier League players that will be involved in the tournament.
The stage is set for the highly anticipated 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), with 24 countries gearing up for an exciting winter tournament. The action kicks off on 13 January 2024, and culminates with the final on 11 February, AFCON promises intense competition and showcases the footballing talent from across the African continent. Notably, a significant contingent of Premier League players will be participating, adding an extra layer of intrigue to the event, and concerns for some clubs and fans.
Which Premier League teams could be most/least affected?
In October the AFCON 2023 draw for the group stage of the 2023 AFCON took place in the Ivorian capital Abidjan and it was Group C that caught many an eye as reigning champions Senegal were pitted along with Cameroon, Guinea and Gambia. But away from the individual nations worrying about their opposition in the tournament, clubs around the world were starting to ponder time without their African stars.
AFCON sees Salah absence as Man City escape
Teams in the Premier League know from experience how the start of the calendar year, and therefore the second half of the domestic season, can be crucial to them as they jostle for position in the table. So losing key players is the last thing they want. Nottingham Forest are one of the clubs that will be most significantly affected, with the likes of Aurier, Boly and Nihakte set to be absent for an extended period. Liverpool too are set to miss one of the greatest players to grace the English top flight, Mohamed Salah, who will be aiming to demonstrate once again why he’s the Egyptian King.
In contrast, Manchester City and Newcastle United have escaped unscathed, as they are some of the few Premier League clubs without any player representation at AFCON. This could provide a crucial advantage to these teams as they aim to navigate through a crucial stretch of fixtures in both the Premier League and other competitions. And City can count on the return from injury of Kevin de Bruyne for the run-in too.
AFCON 2023 Groups:
GROUP A: Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria
GROUP B: Mozambique, Cape Verde, Ghana, Egypt
GROUP C: Gambia, Guinea, Cameroon, Senegal
GROUP D: Angola, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Algeria
GROUP F: Tanzania, Zambia, Democratic Rep. Congo, Morocco
Missing players for big Premier League games
The AFCON 2023 schedule intersects with key fixtures in the Premier League, potentially leading to the absence of star players in pivotal matches. Liverpool, for instance, might have to navigate critical encounters against Chelsea and Arsenal without Salah along with a League Cup semi-final against Fulham. Fortunately they have a number of other attacking options this season.
Forest, for their part, have EPL games against Brentford, Arsenal, Bournemouth and Newcastle over the same period.
All the Premier League games taking place during AFCON 2023 can be seen below.
Full list of AFCON 2023 players at Premier League teams
Group A
Ivory Coast: Serge Aurier (Nottingham Forest), Willy Boly (Nottingham Forest), Ibrahim Sangare (Nottingham Forest), Simon Adingra (Brighton) Nigeria: Ola Aina (Nottingham Forest), Calvin Bassey (Fulham), Alex Iwobi (Fulham), Frank Onyeka (Brentford)
Group B
Egypt: Mohamed Elneny (Arsenal), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) Ghana: Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace), Mohammed Kudus (West Ham), Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth)
Group C
Senegal: Fode Ballo-Toure (Fulham), Moussa Niakhate (Nottingham Forest), Idrissa Gueye (Everton), Chekihou Kouyate (Nottingham Forest), Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham), Nicolas Jackson (Chelsea) Cameroon: Andre Onana (Manchester United)
Group D
Algeria: Rayan Ait-Nouri (Wolves), Yasser Larouci (Sheffield United) Burkina Faso: Issa Kabore (Luton Town), Bertrand Traore (Aston Villa), Dango Ouattara (Bournemouth)
Group E
Tunisia: Anis Ben Slimane (Sheffield United) Mali: Yves Bissouma (Tottenham), Boubacar Traore (Wolves)
Group F
Morocco: Nayef Aguerd (West Ham), Sofyan Amrabat (Manchester United) DR Congo: Yoane Wissa (Brentford)
Premier League fixtures during AFCON
Saturday 13 January 2024*
AFC Bournemouth v Liverpool
Arsenal v Crystal Palace
Brentford v Nottingham Forest
Brighton v Wolves
Burnley v Luton Town
Chelsea v Fulham
Everton v Aston Villa
Man Utd v Spurs
Newcastle v Man City
Sheff Utd v West Ham
*Fixtures to be split across weekends of 13 & 20 January
Tuesday 30 January 2024
Aston Villa v Newcastle
Fulham v Everton
Luton Town v Brighton
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal
Spurs v Brentford
West Ham v AFC Bournemouth
Wolves v Man Utd
Crystal Palace v Sheff Utd
Wednesday 31 January 2024
Liverpool v Chelsea
Man City v Burnley
Saturday 3 February 2024
AFC Bournemouth v Nottingham Forest
Arsenal v Liverpool
Brentford v Man City
Brighton v Crystal Palace
Burnley v Fulham
Chelsea v Wolves
Everton v Spurs
Man Utd v West Ham
Newcastle v Luton Town
Sheff Utd v Aston Villa
Saturday 10 February 2024
Aston Villa v Man Utd
Crystal Palace v Chelsea
Fulham v AFC Bournemouth
Liverpool v Burnley
Luton Town v Sheff Utd
Man City v Everton
Nottingham Forest v Newcastle
Spurs v Brighton
West Ham v Arsenal
Wolves v Brentford