The African Cup Of Nations Deserves As Much Respect As Any Continental Tournament

“For Europe, Africa is sometimes a bit far away.”

Gernot Rohr, the German former coach of the Nigeria national team, summed up the feeling that seems to emanate from much of European soccer when it comes to the African Cup of Nations (AFCON).  

Speaking to the German Press Agency (dpa), Rohr called for more respect for the tournament, which begins tomorrow and runs until February 6. He is not the first to make the request.

This year’s AFCON, hosted by Cameroon, was moved from the Northern Hemisphere summer to winter for cooler weather conditions. It means, however, that the tournament will be played in the middle of the season for the big five European leagues.

When the change of date was announced, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp called it a “catastrophe”. He will not be able to call on Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane or Naby Keita for Liverpool’s matches while they are representing Egypt, Senegal and Guinea respectively.

Other European clubs are in a similar position. Many of the players in this year’s AFCON play their club soccer outside their home continent. Their clubs must navigate the coming weeks without those players.

While clearly frustrating to lose key performers halfway through a season – particularly given Covid-19 outbreaks are still hitting squads – some clubs have been less than helpful in releasing players for international duty.

FIFA had already changed the rule stating players must be released by December 27, extending it to January 3 “in the spirit of goodwill and solidarity”.

But there have still been disagreements. Premier League struggler Watford, two points outside the relegation zone, was accused of “baring fangs” after objecting to top scorer Emmanuel Dennis being named in Nigeria AFCON squad. The Nigeria Football Federation missed the deadline to request the forward’s release. He will not play in the tournament.

The same club was also accused of blocking the call-up of star player Ismaila Sarr from Senegal. Sarr has not played since suffering knee ligament damage in November and Watford say he is still injured. Earlier this week, Sarr joined the Senegal squad.   

Club vs. country rows are not new or uncommon, with the players typically the ones stuck in the middle. But it does seem clubs are more willing to be difficult or demanding when it is non-European countries the players represent.

In the build-up to AFCON, some players have been asked if they would agree to the call-ups from their country or refuse in order to play for their club.

“Would this [question] ever have been asked to a European player towards a European Championship?” Sebastien Haller, the Ajax striker who represents Ivory Coast, asked in comments to De Telegraaf newspaper.

Former England and Arsenal striker Ian Wright, now a television pundit, has criticized some of the media coverage of the tournament.

“Is there ever a tournament more disrespected than the Africa Cup of Nations?” Wright said.

“There is no greater honour than representing your country. The coverage is completely tinged with racism.

“There are players getting asked if they will be honouring the call-ups to their national teams. Imagine if that was an England player representing the Three Lions. Can you imagine the furore?”

The timing is disruptive to clubs who will lose important players. But, apart from the World Cup, this is the most important tournament for African countries. The nations involved are playing for the pride of the continent.

The reality is the vast majority of the best African players are employed in Europe. This should not in any way diminish their opportunities to represent their countries. For the players, AFCON is just as important as a European Championship or Copa America.  

“I will never stop any players to go to play the African Cup of Nations,” Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira, who was born in Senegal, said last month.

 “I believe that that competition has to be more respected. This competition is as important as the European Championship.”