The <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/africa-cup-of-nations/">Africa Cup of Nations</a> is set to kick off on December 21 and run through January 18, creating a major disruption as clubs continue competing in the heart of the 2025–26 Premier League season. With <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/mohamed-salah/">Mohamed Salah</a> and Bryan Mbeumo among the headline names, several top-flight stars will miss key fixtures while representing their national teams.



As is the case every two years, the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/premier-league/">Premier League</a> must once again navigate the challenges posed by AFCON. The 2025 edition will begin on Sunday, December 21, with hosts Morocco opening the tournament against Comoros. Clubs and national teams reached an agreement allowing players to report for international duty starting December 15.



After a demanding stretch with Liverpool, Mohamed Salah stands out as the most high-profile Premier League player departing for AFCON, as he joins Egypt. “Mo is going to go to the AFCON now, I hope he is going to do very well and in the meantime we have to play here without him,” Liverpool manager Arne Slot said after the win over Brighton.



<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/bryan-mbeumo/">Mbeumo</a> is another major absence, as the Manchester United forward joins Cameroon after being voted Premier League Player of the Month for October. The Red Devils will also be hit with Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast) and Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco) leaving to represent their respective countries.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https://images.worldsoccertalk.com/webp/full/WST_20251218_WST_610716_bryan-mbeumo-manchester-united_340177ce.webp&amp;width=1920&amp;height=1080" alt="Bryan Mbeumo of Manchester United." class="wp-image-610779"></figure><figcaption>Bryan Mbeumo of Manchester United.</figcaption></figure>



Perhaps the biggest blow comes at Sunderland, who will lose as many as six players during the tournament. In their return to the Premier League, the Black Cats sit eighth and have impressed, but they are set to be without Bertrand Traoré, Arthur Masuaku, Noah Sadiki, Chemsdine Talbi, Reinildo Mandava, and Habib Diarra.


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<h2>Few teams remain unaffected by AFCON</h2>



During the AFCON window, up to six Premier League matchdays will be played between the opening match and the final, and depending on how far their national teams advance, some players could miss a significant portion of the season. Still, several clubs will emerge largely unaffected.



Arsenal are among those spared, with no first-team regulars called up for the tournament. Chelsea, Leeds United, and Newcastle United are in a similar position. Bournemouth also avoid disruption, as Ghana failed to qualify for AFCON for the first time in 21 years, meaning Antoine Semenyo remains available, while Amine Adli was not included in Morocco’s squad.



<h2>List of Premier League players leaving for AFCON</h2>



A total of 32 Premier League players have been called up to represent their national teams at the Africa Cup of Nations. Below is the full list, including each player’s national team and club:



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>National team</td><td>Player</td><td>Club affected</td></tr><tr><td>Algeria</td><td>Rayan Ait-Nouri</td><td>Manchester City</td></tr><tr><td>Burkina Faso</td><td>Dango Ouattara</td><td>Brentford</td></tr><tr><td>Burkina Faso</td><td>Bertrand Traore</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>Cameroon</td><td>Bryan Mbeumo</td><td>Manchester United</td></tr><tr><td>Cameroon</td><td>Carlos Baleba</td><td>Brighton</td></tr><tr><td>DR Congo</td><td>Arthur Masuaku</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>DR Congo</td><td>Noah Sadiki</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>DR Congo</td><td>Axel Tuanzebe</td><td>Burnley</td></tr><tr><td>DR Congo</td><td>Aaron Wan-Bissaka</td><td>West Ham</td></tr><tr><td>Egypt</td><td>Omar Marmoush</td><td>Manchester City</td></tr><tr><td>Egypt</td><td>Mohamed Salah</td><td>Liverpool</td></tr><tr><td>Ivory Coast</td><td>Emmanuel Agbadou</td><td>Wolves</td></tr><tr><td>Ivory Coast</td><td>Amad Diallo</td><td>Manchester United</td></tr><tr><td>Ivory Coast</td><td>Willy Boly</td><td>N. Forest</td></tr><tr><td>Ivory Coast</td><td>Ibrahim Sangare</td><td>N. Forest</td></tr><tr><td>Mali</td><td>Yves Bissouma</td><td>Tottenham Hotspur</td></tr><tr><td>Morocco</td><td>Noussair Mazraoui</td><td>Manchester United</td></tr><tr><td>Morocco</td><td>Chemsdine Talbi</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>Mozambique</td><td>Reinildo Mandava</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>Nigeria</td><td>Calvin Bassey</td><td>Fulham</td></tr><tr><td>Nigeria</td><td>Samuel Chukwueze</td><td>Fulham</td></tr><tr><td>Nigeria</td><td>Alex Iwobi</td><td>Fulham</td></tr><tr><td>Nigeria</td><td>Frank Onyeka</td><td>Brentford</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>El Hadji Malick Diouf</td><td>West Ham</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>Idrissa Gana Gueye</td><td>Everton</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>Iliman Ndiaye</td><td>Everton</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>Pape Matar Sarr</td><td>Tottenham</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>Ismaila Sarr</td><td>Crystal Palace</td></tr><tr><td>Senegal</td><td>Habib Diarra</td><td>Sunderland</td></tr><tr><td>South Africa</td><td>Lyle Foster</td><td>Burnley</td></tr><tr><td>Tunisia</td><td>Hannibal Mejbri</td><td>Burnley</td></tr><tr><td>Zimbabwe</td><td>Tawanda Chirewa</td><td>Wolves</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>

Mohamed Salah, Bryan Mbeumo, and more: Which Premier League stars will take part in the Africa Cup of Nations?

Mohamed Salah, Bryan Mbeumo, and more: Which Premier League stars will take part in the Africa Cup of Nations? - World Soccer Talk

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Brentford manager Thomas Frank has claimed that star forward Bryan Mbeumo will join a ‘bigger club’ in the future. The Bees have certainly figured out a way to develop attackers under the Danish coach. Since Frank entered the fray in 2018, <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/brentford-tv-schedule/">Brentford</a> has made a series of profitable moves regarding offensive players.



Neal Maupay, Ollie Watkins, Said Benrahma and Ivan Toney were all purchased by the club in recent years for a combined fee of $18 million. Watkins, now starring for <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/aston-villa-tv-schedule/">Aston Villa</a>, was the priciest of these players at under $8 million. The quartet, however, eventually helped generate nearly $126 million after they were all sold to other teams.



It now seems as if Mbeumo could be next in line. The <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/nations/cameroon-national-team-tv-schedule/">Cameroon</a> international has been a hit signing since joining Brentford for around $7 million in 2019. He has racked up 23 goals and 14 assists in his last 69 <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/premier-league-tv-schedule/">Premier League</a> matches with the Bees. As a result, <a href="https://www.transfermarkt.us/bryan-mbeumo/profil/spieler/413039" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Transfermarkt</a> currently values Mbeumo at about $44 million.



<h2>Frank hints that Mbeumo is more important to Bees than Toney was</h2>



Frank was asked about his star attacker in a recent press conference. The manager raved about the versatile star and even claimed that Mbeumo would likely move on to a bigger club in the future.



“He was our key player and has added another layer this season with five goals in six games,” <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/bryan-mbeumo-transfer-brentford-toney-33778448" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stated</a> Frank. “That’s incredible. He’s a top player. I’m convinced he will play for a bigger club. I’d buy him if I was at a bigger club!”



“We convinced him to stay and he’s very happy. All our players might need to leave us one day but a lot of them are happy because we have a top environment, with good people. We push each other.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" width="1200" height="675" src="https://ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https://images.worldsoccertalk.com/webp/full/WST_20241002_WST_533028_Mbeumo-Bicycle-1200x675_4b2bbdb9.webp&amp;width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="" class="wp-image-533092" srcset="https://worldsoccertalk.cms.futbolsitesnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/Mbeumo-Bicycle-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https://worldsoccertalk.cms.futbolsitesnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/Mbeumo-Bicycle-300x169.jpg 300w, https://worldsoccertalk.cms.futbolsitesnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/Mbeumo-Bicycle-768x432.jpg 768w, https://worldsoccertalk.cms.futbolsitesnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/Mbeumo-Bicycle-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://worldsoccertalk.cms.futbolsitesnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/Mbeumo-Bicycle.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px"></figure></figure>



Frank also admitted that Mbeumo’s serious injury last season affected the team more than Toney’s absence. Mbeumo suffered a nasty ankle setback in December, forcing him to miss three months of action. Toney, on the other hand, remained on the sidelines after receiving an <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/ivan-toney-receives-eight-month-suspension-for-betting-20230517-WST-433319.html">eight-month ban</a> for betting on matches.



“[Mbeumo] was the biggest miss last year for three months,” <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-13904989/Thomas-Frank-reveals-losing-Bryan-Mbeumo-injury-season-bigger-hit-squad-Ivan-Toneys-betting-ban-Brentford-boss-continues-rebuild-following-star-mans-departure.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">continued</a> Frank. “We had Ivan out. Of course, I still wanted Ivan to be there, but suddenly we missed our key player. Ivan was out for (nearly) the whole season, so that’s why we couldn’t use him. So, I think with Ivan out and then losing Bryan, I think that was an even bigger hit.”



<h2>Trio of top Premier League sides recently linked with Mbeumo</h2>



Frank’s comments suggest that Mbeumo was targeted by top teams during the recent summer transfer market. While a move never materialized, big clubs will certainly return for the star next summer if he can keep up his scoring pace. At the moment, only Erling Haaland and Cole Palmer have more Premier League goals this season than Mbeumo.



Along with his impressive statistics, the Cameroonian’s versatility is also a major attraction for other teams. Although not the biggest player, Mbeumo is capable of either playing on the right wing or through the middle as a center forward. 



<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/arsenal-tv-schedule/">Arsenal</a>, Liverpool, and Newcastle have all been <a href="https://www.givemesport.com/liverpool-arsenal-newcastle-united-transfer-news-face-battle-bryan-mbeumo/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recently rumored</a> to be interested in the Brentford star. The Gunners opted to sign Raheem Sterling on loan from <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/chelsea-tv-schedule/">Chelsea</a> during the recent transfer window. The move, however, is not permanent, and Arsenal needs to find long-term competition for Bukayo Saka.



<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/liverpool-tv-schedule/">Liverpool</a>, on the other hand, could be losing superstar Mohamed Salah next summer. If so, the Reds will have a huge hole to fill in the position. Even now, the Egyptian attacker is the only true right winger on the team’s roster. Likewise, <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/teams/newcastle-united-tv-schedule/">Newcastle</a> is also looking for upgrades at the position over Jacob Murphy and Miguel Almiron.



PHOTOS: IMAGO

Brentford boss: Mbeumo will move on to a big club

Brentford manager Thomas Frank has claimed that star forward Bryan Mbeumo will join a 'bigger club' in the future.

Brentford boss: Mbeumo will move on to a big club - World Soccer Talk

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