MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United is trying to get late clearance to play Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui in Monday’s Premier League game against Bournemouth before the trio head off to the Africa Cup of Nations.
Coach Ruben Amorim said he doesn’t know if the players will be available, with just three days to go before that game at Old Trafford.
“We are still in conversations with the national teams,” he said Friday. “They are here, they are training and we are trying to prepare all the scenarios for the game.
“It’s frustrating, but at the same time nobody knows who is going to play, so it’s a good thing I think.”
FIFA announced this month that it was reducing the mandatory period when players must be released from 14 to seven days before the start of the tournament. It said players would be released from Monday ahead of the opening match on Dec. 21.
Players could be away for more than a month, depending on how their countries perform, with the final on Jan. 18.
Cameroon forward Mbeumo’s involvement in the AFCON means United will be without its leading scorer. He has seven goals since his $87 million move from Brentford in the summer.
Cameroon plays its first game against Gabon on Dec. 24. Diallo’s Ivory Coast meets Mozambique the same day while Mazraoui represents host Morocco, which faces Comoros in the opening game.
Amorim said he didn’t know if all the national teams would demand players be released at the same time.
“It depends on the games, every national team has their ideas about when they want the players,” he said. “I expect today to have a decision or maybe tomorrow, but we are waiting until the last moment to have all the players to choose the best team to start the game.”
A number of Premier League players are taking part in the AFCON including Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush, who both play for Egypt.
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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Robson, The Associated Press
