Manchester United are yet to reveal whether Bryan Mbeumo, Amad and Noussair Mazraoui will feature against Bournemouth on Monday evening
Manchester United are aiming to keep the availability of Bryan Mbeumo, Amad and Noussair Mazraoui under wraps as the trio prepare to jet off to the Africa Cup of Nations. The Reds face Bournemouth on Monday evening as they look to move up to fifth in the Premier League table with a win.
But they may have to beat the Cherries, who have won on their last two visits to Old Trafford, without three key players. Rules from world governing body Fifa state that players must be released from Monday for Afcon, which kicks off in Morocco on Sunday.
The rule has created a predicament for United, as their match against Bournemouth is scheduled just five days before the tournament kicks off. It means the participation of Mbeumo, Amad and Mazraoui against Andoni Iraola’s side remains uncertain ahead of the 8pm kick-off at M16.
Club officials have been in discussions with the football federations of Cameroon, Morocco, and the Ivory Coast regarding all three players in an attempt to secure an extension. The extension would allow them to participate in the Bournemouth match before jetting off to the tournament.
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Asked during Friday’s pre-match press conference for an update on United’s Afcon trio, Reds boss Ruben Amorim remained in the dark over their avaliability.
He said: “I don’t know if it’s going to be the same situation. It depends on the games, and every national team has an idea of when they want their players. I expect to know today.”
In total, more than 40 Premier League players are expected to be unavailable for the duration of the tournament, while 17 of the 20 English top-flight clubs will lose at least one player, with some sides being stripped of their core starters.
The deadline for clubs to release players for Afcon had been pushed back. Teams were previously required to release players to their national sides by Monday, December 8
Recent years have seen a softening of regulations following discussions between key stakeholders, including CAF, the governing body for African football, and European Football Clubs (ECF, previously known as the European Club Association).
Before AFCON 2021, CAF agreed that Premier League players could participate in club matches up until six days prior to the tournament’s commencement.
In the previous year, goalkeeper Andre Onana represented United on January 14, before immediately jetting off to the Ivory Coast to meet his Cameroon team-mates.
They were set to kick off their AFCON 2023 (taking place in 2024) campaign the following day.
However, due to travel complications, Onana was unable to play in Cameroon’s opening match.
