Published: December 18, 2021 2:30 pm
Last Updated: December 18, 2021 2:38 pm
Premier League stars set to depart for AFCON
As it stands, a whole host of Premier League and European League players are set to leave their clubs on December 26th to take part in the Africa Cup of Nations, which runs through January.
In doing so, they will miss up to a month of Premier League action, including key fixtures for their sides.
Most hurt by this is sure to be Liverpool, who would be third in the top flight on Mohamed Salah’s goal contributions alone, such is his contribution to Jurgen Klopp’s side.
All 52 games of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations tournament will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in January and February.
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) December 15, 2021
The tournament, backed by Sky Sports, is set to take place in Cameroon, and both Liverpool and Arsenal will lose several players, while Chelsea will be without shot-stopper Edouard Mendy and Hakim Ziyech.
Now, amid rising speculation, CAF have issued a statement.
Or are they?
Amid rising Omicron cases, there were fears that the whole tournament could be scrapped over safety concerns. This, while frustrating for players, would have come as a massive boost to Premier League sides, not least Liverpool.
However, the African football federation CAF have since released a statement, in which they claim:
“AFCON will proceed in Cameroon as planned and that any talk of cancellation “is not even a subject of debate as far as we are concerned.””
Statement from CAF says AFCON will proceed in Cameroon as planned and that any talk of cancellation “is not even a subject of debate as far as we are concerned.”
— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) December 18, 2021
Is this a final stance, or will it change as cases continue to soar across Europe?
Read more:
Three possible replacements for Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after striker’s exile
Tottenham boss Antonio Conte makes ‘very strange’ Harry Kane claim before Liverpool
This article was edited by
Josh Barker.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 17 | 31 | 41 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 17 | 35 | 40 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 17 | 27 | 37 |
| 4 | Arsenal FC | 17 | 1 | 29 |
| 5 | West Ham United | 17 | 7 | 28 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 16 | 2 | 27 |
| 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 14 | -1 | 25 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 17 | -1 | 24 |
| 9 | Leicester City | 16 | 22 | |
| 10 | Aston Villa | 17 | -2 | 22 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 17 | 20 | |
| 12 | Brentford FC | 16 | -1 | 20 |
| 13 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 16 | -3 | 20 |
| 14 | Everton FC | 17 | -8 | 19 |
| 15 | Southampton FC | 17 | -10 | 17 |
| 16 | Leeds United | 17 | -15 | 16 |
| 17 | Watford FC | 16 | -10 | 13 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 15 | -7 | 11 |
| 19 | Newcastle United | 17 | -19 | 10 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 17 | -26 | 10 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 9 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 9 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 7 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 7 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 7 |
| Silva, Bernardo | Manchester City | 7 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 6 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 6 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 6 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United | 6 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 5 |
| King, Joshua | Watford FC | 5 |
| Gray, Demarai | Everton FC | 5 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 5 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 5 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 6 | |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 6 | |
| Laporte, Aymeric | Manchester City | 1 | 5 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 6 | |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 1 | 4 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 4 |
| Canos, Sergi | Brentford FC | 5 | |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 5 | |
| Ritchie, Matt | Newcastle United | 5 | |
| Westwood, Ashley | Burnley FC | 5 | |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 5 | |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 5 | |
| Duffy, Shane | Brighton & Hove Albion | 5 | |
| Lascelles, Jamaal | Newcastle United | 5 | |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 5 | |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 5 | |
| Ward, Joel | Crystal Palace | 5 | |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 5 | |
| Skipp, Oliver | Tottenham Hotspur | 5 | |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 8 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 7 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 6 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 5 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 4 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 4 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 4 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 4 |
| Redmond, Nathan | Southampton FC | 4 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 4 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 3 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 3 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 3 |
| Foden, Phil | Manchester City | 3 |
| Gundogan, Ilkay | Manchester City | 3 |
| Saint-Maximin, Allan | Newcastle United | 3 |