The Premier League players that are set to take part in AFCON this season | OneFootball

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is fast approaching and some of the Premier League’s biggest stars could leave their clubs for up to a month.

Unlike the Euros and the Copa America which take place in the summer, AFCON is typically held in the winter months. This is normally because of issues with the heat, although this year’s edition, which will be held in Morocco, was intended to happen last summer. However, in order to avoid clashing with FIFA’s expanded Club World Cup, the tournament was moved to the winter.

Taking place between between December 21 and January 18, it means a number of star players will be unavailable for their clubs during the busy festive period. The amount of time they are absent will obviously depend on how well their national teams do in the tournament.

So how will it affect Premier League teams?

High-flying Sunderland are the team that will be most heavily impacted, with seven of their players set to feature at the tournament – Reinildo Mandava (Mozambique), Arthur Masuaku (DR Congo), Habib Diarra (Senegal), Noah Sadiki (DR Congo), Simon Adingra (Ivory Coast), Chemsdine Talbi (Morocco) and Bertrand Traore (Burkina Faso).

The Black Cats will be down on numbers as they face Brighton, Leeds, Manchester City, Tottenham, Brentford and Crystal Palace across that period.

Wolves are already in deep trouble at the bottom of the Premier League table and will face more challenges when up to five of their players head to AFCON – Emmanuel Agbadou (Ivory Coast), Jackson Tchatchoua (Cameroon), Marshall Munetsi (Zimbabwe), Tawanda Chirewa (Zimbabwe) and Tolu Arokodare (Nigeria).

Fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest will also be left short staffed. They could be without four players – Willy Boly (Ivory Coast), Ola Aina (Nigeria), Ibrahim Sangare (Ivory Coast) and Taiwo Awoniyi (Nigeria). As will Crystal Palace – Chadi Riad (Morocco), Cheick Doucoure (Mali), Ismaila Sarr (Senegal) and Christantus Uche (Nigeria).

Manchester United are set to lose two of their most important attackers in both Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon) and Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast). Ruben Amorim is also set to lose defender Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco) for up to a month as well.

Bryan Mbeumo celebrates for Man Utd (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Everton – Adam Aznou (Morocco), Idrissa Gueye (Senegal) and Iliman Ndiaye (Senegal), and Burnley – Axel Tuanzebe (DR Congo), Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia) and Lyle Foster (South Africa) are also likely to lose three players during the tournament. Fulham, meanwhile, are set to be without their Nigerian trio – Calvin Bassey (Nigeria), Alex Iwobi (Nigeria) and Samuel Chukwueze (Nigeria).

Manchester City will be weakened by the absence of two recent signings – Omar Marmoush (Egypt) and Rayan Ait-Nouri (Algeria). Pep Guardiola’s side will try to keep pace with Arsenal as they face some tough fixtures during the AFCON period, notably against Chelsea and Man United.

Tottenham Hotspur will be left short in midfield, as they also lose two players – Yves Bissouma (Mali) and Pape Sarr (Senegal). However Thomas Frank will be relieved to retain the services of Mohammed Kudus, after Ghana failed to qualify for the competition.

West Ham will be without two of their full-backs – El Hadji Malick Diouf (Senegal) and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (DR Congo).

Mohamed Salah (Egypt) will be the biggest name at the tournament and a massive miss for Liverpool. Arne Slot’s side face Spurs and Arsenal over the period AFCON is taking place, as their prospects of retaining the title grow increasingly dimmer.

Mo Salah celebrates with Egypt (Photo by ABDEL MAJID BZIOUAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Newcastle will lose Yoane Wissa (DR Congo), with the forward still yet to make his debut for the Magpies. Brighton will be without key midfielder Carlos Baleba (Cameroon), while Aston Villa’s Evann Guessand (Ivory Coast) will be at AFCON, as will Bournemouth’s Amine Adli (Morocco). The Cherries will be similarly relieved to Spurs that Ghana did not qualify, allowing them to keep talisman Antoine Semenyo.

The remaining teams, Arsenal, Chelsea and Leeds United, will all maintain their full numbers throughout AFCON. This is sure to provide them with a boost as they face weakened opposition and their rivals are diminished.

The impact of the tournament could be massive, not only because of the players that are absent, but also the affect it will have on the players that remain. With the festive period as busy as ever, it is nightmare timing for teams to have their squads reduced.

AFCON is sure to provide numerous headaches for Premier League managers, and for the lucky few that will be unaffected, it could well be a massive advantage.