AFCON has always existed in a space that English football struggles to fully accommodate. It arrives in the middle of a season that already feels stretched thin.
Fixtures pile up. Squads rotate out of necessity rather than choice. Rhythm becomes fragile. For clubs built on continuity, AFCON can feel less like an international tournament and more like a stress test.
The 2025 edition comes at a particularly awkward moment. Premier League squads are deeper than they were a decade ago, yet more finely balanced. Tactical systems rely on specific profiles rather than interchangeable parts. Lose the wrong player, and the whole structure bends. Lose several, and it creaks.
Thirty-two Premier League players will head to Morocco for AFCON 2025. The number itself feels manageable. The distribution does not.
Some clubs lose rotation pieces. Others lose their spine. Context matters more than volume, but volume still hurts when it drains one dressing room disproportionately.
What follows is not simply a list of absences. It is an examination of how those absences land, where the strain appears, and why some teams will feel the weight of AFCON far more than others.
Sunderland: 6 Players
No Premier League club sends more players to AFCON 2025 than Sunderland, and no club feels the disruption more sharply because of it.
Their return to the top flight has been impressive rather than noisy. A derby win over Newcastle pushed them to 26 points after 16 games, a tally that already eclipses what last season’s promoted trio managed across an entire campaign. Sunderland look organised, brave in possession, and emotionally connected to their surroundings.
AFCON removes a chunk of that identity.
Six players depart, representing almost a fifth of the Premier League contingent at the tournament. Bertrand Traoré, Arthur Masuaku, Noah Sadiki, Chemsdine Talbi, Reinildo Mandava and Habib Diarra take with them over 4,400 league minutes and 61 appearances. No other club comes close to losing that much accumulated involvement.
Sadiki stands out most. He has missed just 26 minutes of Sunderland’s league season.
His role in the build-up phase is central. He drops deep, offers angles, and progresses possession with calm authority. Alongside Granit Xhaka, he gives Sunderland structure and control in midfield, allowing others to take risks higher up.
Traoré and Talbi remove creativity from wide areas.
Both sit among Sunderland’s leading chance creators this season. Their absence narrows the pitch and limits unpredictability. Masuaku and Reinildo weaken defensive depth and flexibility, while Diarra removes energy and forward thrust.
The only mild relief comes from Simon Adingra staying behind after being omitted from Côte d’Ivoire’s squad. It avoids a seventh absence but does little to soften the broader impact.
For Régis Le Bris, this becomes a month of survival rather than momentum. Sunderland has built their early success on cohesion and repetition. AFCON fractures both.
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Manchester United: 3 Players
Manchester United loses fewer players than Sunderland, but the quality and influence of those players exacerbate the problem.
Bryan Mbeumo and Amad Diallo both leave after featuring heavily in United’s attacking structure. Their final appearance before departure came in a chaotic draw against Bournemouth, a match that underlined how vital they have become to United’s attacking rhythm.
Mbeumo leads the club in league goals. He also leads in expected goals. His movement, ball carrying, and ability to arrive in scoring zones have masked deeper issues within United’s build-up play. Remove him, and goals become harder to source.
Amad offers something different. He stretches the pitch, creates from open play, and thrives in tight spaces. His creativity ranks second only to Bruno Fernandes within the squad. Together, Mbeumo and Amad account for a significant share of United’s attacking output.
Noussair Mazraoui also departs with Morocco, though his league involvement has been limited. Still, his absence reduces full-back depth at a time when injuries already threaten stability.
United have numbers. They lack clarity. AFCON strips away two players who were providing it.
Fulham: 3Players
Fulham’s losses cut deeper than they appear on paper.
Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey, and Samuel Chukwueze all join Nigeria, and all three have been integral to Marco Silva’s system. Iwobi and Bassey have started every league match so far. Chukwueze has surged into form, delivering five goal involvements in his last five appearances.
Iwobi is Fulham’s creative hub. He leads the team in chances created, connects midfield to attack, and offers positional flexibility that allows Silva to adjust shape without substitution.
His absence removes invention and experience in equal measure.
Bassey anchors the defence. He defends wide spaces, steps into midfield when required, and brings physical assurance. Losing him disrupts Fulham’s defensive balance.
Chukwueze removes momentum. His recent form had given Fulham an edge they previously lacked. Without him, attacks risk becoming predictable.
If Nigeria go deep, Fulham face a prolonged period without three starters. In a tight mid-table battle, that margin matters.
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Burnley: 3 Players
Burnley’s losses reflect the breadth rather than the depth of their squad.
Axel Tuanzebe, Hannibal Mejbri, and Lyle Foster all depart for DR Congo, Tunisia, and South Africa, respectively. Each represents a different unit within Vincent Kompany’s setup.
Tuanzebe offers defensive versatility. Hannibal brings energy and bite to midfield. Foster provides physical presence up front. None is irreplaceable individually, but together they thin the squad across all lines.
Burnley’s challenge lies in rotation rather than system collapse. AFCON removes options and increases workload for those who remain.
Everton: 2 Players
Everton loses two players, yet both absences hit the core of their team.
Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye represent Senegal and have been central to David Moyes’ approach this season. Ndiaye leads Everton in goal involvements. Gueye provides defensive stability and experience in midfield.
Ndiaye offers creativity, ball progression, and direct threat. His ability to carry possession through pressure gives Everton an outlet when under strain. Without him, the attacking transitions slow.
Gueye remains one of the league’s most reliable midfield disruptors. His positioning and timing allow Everton to stay compact.
Together, they form the bridge between defence and attack. AFCON removes that bridge.
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West Ham United: 2 Players
West Ham loses both first-choice full-backs.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka and El Hadji Malick Diouf account for a significant share of West Ham’s defensive output and wide progression. Their departures reshape the flanks entirely.
Diouf leads the team in assists. Wan-Bissaka leads in interceptions. Together, they provide balance on both sides of the pitch.
West Ham does not rely heavily on crossing, but when they do, these two dominate involvement. Losing both simultaneously forces tactical compromise.
For a team built on defensive organisation and structured transitions, losing both full-backs at once presents a serious challenge.
Nottingham Forest: 2 Players
Forest lose Ibrahim Sangaré and Willy Boly, though Boly has not featured in the league this season.
Sangaré’s absence matters. He has featured in most league games and ranks highly for tackles and interceptions. His recent performance against Spurs, delivering a goal and two assists, highlighted his growing influence.
Forest’s midfield balance suffers without him. His presence allows others to play with freedom. Without him, the structure tightens.
Forest avoids further damage thanks to Nigeria’s omissions, though injuries may still limit options.
Manchester City: 2 Players
Manchester City lose Omar Marmoush and Rayan Aït-Nouri, neither of whom has featured heavily in league play.
The impact here is minimal. City’s depth absorbs the loss comfortably. Tactical continuity remains intact.
This is AFCON at its least disruptive.
Tottenham Hotspur: 2 Players
Tottenham lose Yves Bissouma to Mali. Willy Boly joins Côte d’Ivoire but has not played this season.
Bissouma’s absence removes a defensive midfielder who offers ball security and athletic coverage. Spurs have alternatives, but none replicate his profile exactly.
The larger relief comes from Mohammed Kudus staying put due to Ghana’s failure to qualify. His creativity and assist numbers remain vital to Spurs’ attacking output.
Tottenham feel disruption, but not crisis.
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Brighton, Crystal Palace, and Liverpool: 1 Player Each
Each of these clubs loses a single player, yet each loss carries disproportionate weight.
Liverpool lose Mohamed Salah. His influence transcends current form debates. Even in a reduced role, he remains involved in goals and shots at elite levels. His departure removes experience, threat, and narrative gravity from Liverpool’s attack.
Crystal Palace lose Ismaïla Sarr. He trails only Mateta for goals across competitions. His pace and directness define Palace’s attacking transitions.
Brighton loses Carlos Baleba. He has played every league match this season and anchors the midfield defensively. His interception and tackle numbers underline his consistency.
One absence can hurt more than three when it strikes the wrong position.
Clubs Losing No Players
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Leeds United, and Newcastle United escape unscathed.
Bournemouth benefit most. Antoine Semenyo stays due to Ghana’s absence. His goal involvement tally underlines how important that is.
Newcastle retain Yoane Wissa due to injury timing. Chelsea and Arsenal avoid disruption entirely.
In January, stability becomes an advantage. These clubs enter the period with continuity intact.
