Players to watch out for at this year’s AFCON
Every year at the AFCON, an unexpected star, both young or old comes to the fore and introduces themselves to the world. Therefore, in the following article I will detail players you should keep a close eye on at this year’s AFCON, as they have the potential to have career-defining tournaments.
Guinea’s Talisman — Serhou Guirassy
Given his record breaking exploits in the Bundesliga this season, my first pick may break the rules, but many are still unaware of the talent of Serhou Guirassy.
Whilst being loaned out to Stuttgart from Rennes last season, with 11 in 22 games, the striker showed glimpses of the form he is currently showing today. However, no one expected the 27-year-old striker to be having the season he is currently.
The revelation of the Bundesliga this season. Second in the Goal scoring charts with 17 goals, only behind Harry Kane 21 Bundesliga goals. Guirassy averages 1.45 goals per 90 mins and has the best mins per goal ratio in the Bundesliga as he scores a goal every 62 minutes. What’s striking about the Guinean is his ability to be in the right place at the right time. Standing at 6ft2 tall he is more than capable of scoring with his head, he is confident in 1v1 situations and has also scored goals from outside the box.
Guinea will be relying on his status as one of Europe’s most in form strikers to qualify from a tough group, consisting of Cameroon and last year’s winners, Senegal. Serhou Guirassy is also recovering from a muscle injury so, faces a race against the clock to be fit in time for the beginning of the tournament.
Guirrassy’s success in Ivory Coast this year will be dependent on whether Guinea can provide the service he requires. However due to the strength of the opposition, this may be wishful thinking as Guinea may be limited to attacking opportunities and be forced to play deep to remain in games against tough opposition. Whatever happens, pay close attention to Guirassy as he bids to provide the Guinean faithful with reason to be joyful.
The home nation’s Star Boy — Ousmane Diomande
Hosts Ivory Coast have a star of the future within their ranks. An ever present figure in table topping sporting CP, Ousmane Diomande is a player many will have an eye on at this year’s AFCON. A mainstay in Sporting’s team, the 20-year-old defender is tipped to achieve great exploits in the game. Locked down by a £69 million release clause, there have been rumours of interest from the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool. With this year’s AFCON taking place in Ivory Coast, there will be expectations for the highly rated youngster to come to the fore and perform.
So what is his playing style? Diomande is a player who in defensive positions will throw his life on the line for his team. In a similar way to Christian Romero and Dayot Upamecano, he prefers to play on the front foot and win possession ahead of his opponents. Of course we know that this can have its pros and cons. When necessary he has shown to have good recovery pace and is reliable and he has been ever present in this season’s Sporting team. A consistent factor in his game has been his tendency to step out of the defence and progress the ball from deep areas. At club level, he plays at the right of a back 3, so it will be interesting to see how he adapts to the back 4 system deployed by the Elephants. He is also a proven goal threat as he bagged a goal in Ivory Coast’s 5–1 victory against Sierra Leone in their warm up fixture.
In a tournament where the hosts have high expectations, if they are to make meaningful strides towards tournament glory, expect Ousmane Diomande to have made a meaningful contribution.
Set piece Specialist — Lamine Camara
Amongst the experienced internationals, at the heart of the Senegalese squad lies a 20 year old midfielder by the name of Lamine Camara. The star man of Senegal’s spotless run to AFCON U20 campaign, as he captained the side to tournament success. Many are excited to see how Camara progresses from the youth team to the senior side of the tournament favourites. Currently plying his trade in Ligue 1 for Metz I would assign him the nickname of the ‘metronome’.
An all-round midfielder who possesses all the attributes necessary to take him to the top. Whilst captaining Senegal to AFCON U20 glory, what was evident was the maturity he played with. Camara was at the heart of all the Senegal attacks, and was accordingly awarded as the player of the tournament. Given his capabilities with dead ball situations, and how notoriously cagey AFCON games can be. Camara may become a useful weapon. To be successful in the men’s game, a strong mentality is required, and Camara fulfils this requirement. He was often the driving force of the Senegalese U20 winning squad and led by example.
This tournament will be a great time to introduce himself to the world. Playing for one of the tournament favourites will help him too. He will have more opportunity to display his ability on the ball and from set piece situations. AFCON 2023 may be the year Europe and the world takes notice of the talent of Lamine Camara
The Mercurial — Mohammed Amoura
For many years, Algeria have had to rely on the legendary 35-year-old, Islam Slimani. And despite the presence of the competent Belaili and Bounedjah who are 31 and 32 years old respectively, this may be the tournament where 23-year-old Mohamed Amoura introduces himself. The young striker has been tearing up the Jupiler Pro League this season for Union SG, with 13 goals in 15 games. He has also contributed two goals to their Europa league campaign. The Algerian striker will be hoping to replicate his form for his club side to take Algeria to International glory.
Amoura is a player who is fuelled by the feeling of scoring goals. Despite his diminutive stature, he has found the net on several occasions this season with his head. Despite playing the majority of his games from the centre forward position, he is comfortable with drifting into the wide areas to stretch the opposition. This skill may be vital for Algeria at this year’s AFCON because many games will be won by tight margins. Therefore, if Algeria can utilise the tenacity of Amoura to stretch and hassle defences, The Fennecs will be able to gain an advantage and increase their chances of being crowned the Kings of Africa.
Algeria have a lot of attacking options, but I am backing Amoura to introduce himself as a player to take note of at this year’s AFCON. If given the opportunity expect a hunger and desire from the Algerian to score goals and lead his nation to the highly sought after trophy.
The players mentioned are only some of the players I could have brought to the fore for this conversation. So expect many other players to break out at this year’s AFCON tournament.
