And come on, let's go for a new soap opera and a showdown between clubs and selections.

On Wednesday, the European Club Association (ECA) threatened not to release international players for the Africa Cup of Nations in January-February in Cameroon.

“To our knowledge, the African Football Confederation has not yet made public a medical protocol [linked to Covid-19] and operational adapted for the CAN tournament, in the absence of which the clubs will not be able to release their players for the tournament ”, we can read in an email sent last Friday to Fifa.

In addition to the health protocol of the tournament (from January 9 to February 6), the ECA points out above all the risk of an absence of internationals longer than the period of availability provided for, due to the "quarantines and travel restrictions" linked in particular to the emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

According to the relaxed rules for the release of internationals, clubs can retain their players if "a quarantine of at least five days is compulsory from the arrival" on the place "where the match of the national team is supposed to be played. »Of the player, or at the place of the latter's club on his return.

Really “fake news”?

The Board of Directors of the ECA, at the beginning of December, reaffirmed that these principles must be "strictly observed", argues the letter obtained by AFP and addressed to Mattias Grafström, assistant secretary general of Fifa in charge of football .

"Otherwise, the players should not be released for their national team," said the ECA.

Asked by AFP, the African Football Confederation refused to comment and referred to a press release published Wednesday morning where Véron Mosengo-Omba, secretary general of CAF, urges the Cameroonian organizing committee to "work day and night to ensure that everything is in place for the opening match on January 9, 2022 ”.

Asked by AFP, a senior leader of the Cameroonian Football Federation described these speculations as "fake news".

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Covid-19: Towards an cancellation of the Africa Cup of Nations?

  • Covid 19

  • Soccer

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  • CAN

  • Uefa

  • FIFA

  • Mohamed salah

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