This summer transfer window has been particularly active in Marseille, but many have duly noted that many of the new arrivals are African players, who could be involved at the African Cup of Nations in January. Held in Ivory Coast and delayed from this summer due to the heavy rain, the competition will once again bring a lot of scrutiny on players deciding whether or not to play for their country, missing out on several weeks of club matches if they choose to appear at AFCON.
Marseille have recruited Geoffrey Kondogbia (Central African Republic), Pierre-Aymeric Aubameyang (Gabon) as well as Ismaila Sarr and Ilaman Ndaiaye, both of Senegalese nationality, joining their international teammate Pape Gueye, already at the club. Meanwhile, Chancel Mbemba (Democratic Republic of Congo), Amine Harit and Azzedine Ounahi (Morocco) are also playing for Marseille. All could represent their country in winter, making up a potential 7 starters.
This may be should have been a consideration of Pablo Longoria’s as he brokered these deals. However, he explained during a recent press conference that he wanted to pass on a message to French football. “We must manage with AFCON. When making signings, we have to take it into account but this must not stop us. We cannot base our recruitment strategy on one month. With Ligue 1, we need to think about stopping the league competition during AFCON”, explained the president.
There have been many examples in the past of conflicts between clubs and the African nations. Andy Delort signed for Nice, while stating he wouldn’t play for Algeria at AFCON, which angered national team coach Djamel Belmadi. Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has been particularly vocal against African players because of the midseason competition.
Medhi Benatia talked recently with Foot Mercato about how he was offered money to not play AFCON, which he refused. “Today, you would be missing 5 matches maximum. Don’t be ridiculous. The players that are penalised today, are the average players, because between two average players, you’ll pick the one that doesn’t play AFCON. Liverpool, when they had Mané and Salah, AFCON didn’t bother them. Top players aren’t disadvantaged. Missing 5 matches during a 4-year contract is what? It’s just an excuse,” he explained.
Former Senegalese international, Ricardo Faty, also explains that two Ligue 1 sides were dissuaded by his upcoming involvement in AFCON and didn’t want to sign him, so he had to leave for Turkey instead. He does however understand the situation that the clubs are in. “We are talking about a month, but even the preparation, settling down, the return flights. All that creates a shift for the players, sometimes in difficult conditions. You don’t need to be extreme like Napoli president and say you won’t ever recruit African players. But you can understand the frustration of the clubs. I know that some players, including myself, are partisans of AFCON being played in the summer,” adds Faty.
