English Premier League Players Going to AFCON 2025: What You Need to Know

As the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2025) looms, dozens of players from the Premier League are set to depart their clubs to represent their countries. With squads departing ahead of the tournament which runs December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026, clubs across England face a winter without some of their key African talent. The Players are set to be released by their respective starting 15th December 2025.

This exodus will test squad depth, force tactical tweaks, and possibly reshape league standings during the mid-season stretch. For fans, it also means shifting attention, part club football, part continental pride as familiar Premier League faces chase AFCON glory.

Who’s Going: Key Premier League Players Going to AFCON 2025

While the Official squads are yet to be released by respective nations, here are some of the prominent players from Premier League clubs expected to compete in AFCON 2025:

Liverpool

• Mohamed Salah (Egypt)

  
  

  Aston villa

  Evan Guessand (Ivory Coast)

Manchester United

• Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon)

• Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast)

• Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco)

Brighton

• Carlos Baleba (Cameroon)

Everton

• Iliman Ndiaye ( Senegal)

• Idrissa Gueye (Senegal)

• Adam Aznou (Morocco)

Brentford

• Dango Ouattara ( Burkina Faso)

• Frank Onyeka ( Nigeria)

  
  

Bournemouth

• Amine Adli (Morocco)

Burnley

• Hannibal Mejbri (South Africa)

• Lyle Foster (Tunisia)

  
  

Crystal Palace

• Chadi Riad ( Morocco)

• Chemsdine Talbi ( Morocco)

• Cheick Doucoure (Mali)

• Ismaila Sarr (Senegal)

• Christiantus Uche ( Nigeria)

  
  

Fulham

• Alex Iwobi (Nigeria)

• Calvin Bassey (Nigeria)

• Samuel Chukwueze (Nigeria)

Mancity

• Omar Marmoush (Egypt)

• Ryan Ait-Nouri (Morocco)

Nottingham Forest

• Ola Aina* (Nigeria)

• Willy Boly (Ivory Coast)

• Taiwo Awoniyi (Nigeria)

• Ibrahim Sangare (Ivory Coast)

Westham

• El Hadji Malick (Senegal)

• Aaron Wan-Bissaka (DR Congo)

Sunderland

• Arthur Masuaku  (DR Congo)

• Noah Sadiki (DR Congo)

• Simon Adingra (Ivory Coast)

• Bertrand Traoré ( Burkina Faso)

• Chemsdine Talbi (Morocco)

• Reinildo Mandava (Mozambique)

• Habib Diarra (Senegal)

  
  

  Tottenham

• Pape Matar Sarr — Senegal

• Yves Bissouma — Mali

• Mohammed Kudus — Ghana

Wolverhampton

• Marshall Munetsi — Zimbabwe

• Tawanda Chirewa — Zimbabwe

• Tolu Arokodare — Nigeria

• Emmanuel Agbadou — Ivory Coast

Players not included in this list may still get Called up as national team coaches finalize their squads. Many clubs especially mid- and lower-table sides will send multiple players to AFCON, meaning their squads could be heavily impacted for several weeks.

What It Means for Clubs, Fans, and the League

• Squad disruption: Many Premier League clubs will be missing starting players for multiple matches during AFCON. Clubs like Sunderland AFC and Wolverhampton Wanderers are expected to cope with particularly heavy losses.

• Tactical adjustments: Managers will need to rearrange lineups giving chances to backups or youth players, rethinking formations, and managing workload for remaining squad members.

• Opportunity & risk: For some clubs, this is a chance for lesser-known players to impress; for others, it’s a risk of dropped points, instability, or loss of momentum mid-season.

• Increased spotlight on African football: Fans around the world will get to watch familiar Premier League Players Going to AFCON 2025 switching to national-team colours, boosting global viewership and interest in AFCON 2025.