Emerse Faé, head coach of Ivory Coast, has announced his 26-man AFCON squad ahead of this winter’s competition.
Many Premier League stars will feature for the reigning champions, including Manchester United’s Amad Diallo, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Emmanuel Agbadou, and Nottingham Forest’s Willy Boly.
However, four potentially forgotten former English top-flight players will appear for the African giants, including an ex-Manchester United winger, and two Premier League Goal of the Month winners.
When Zaha signed for Manchester United from Crystal Palace in 2013, he was the last player Sir Alex Ferguson acquired for the club.
However, he would only go on to make four appearances for the Red Devils, before the club loaned him back to Palace and he subsequently returned to the Eagles permanently.
The Ivorian played over 450 times for the London side before leaving for Galatasaray in 2023, contributing to 144 goals. Though he never won anything with the club, he cemented himself as a fan-favourite due to his flair and tendency to attack opposition defenders directly.
After playing for Charlotte FC in the MLS on loan this year, he has secured himself a spot in Faé’s squad due to his consistent availability as well as his years of experience at the highest level.
Though he missed the previous AFCON when then-coach Jean-Louis Gasset decided he did not possess the same level of quality as the other wingers available, he is returning to the national team with a point to prove.
Ivory Coast won their second AFCON title the tournament before Zaha made his debut, and they won their third in the only tournament he has missed since. The tricky winger will be desperate to get a hold of the trophy this time around.
Despite signing for West Ham for a club-record fee of £45m in 2019, Haller struggled throughout his time in East London. When David Moyes replaced Manuel Pellegrini, he favoured the Jamaican Michail Antonio and Haller lacked minutes, leading to a January 2021 transfer to Ajax for under £19m.
After leaving West Ham, Haller flourished. He performed magnificently at Ajax and earned a transfer to Borussia Dortmund. However, just 12 days after signing for the German giants, doctors diagnosed the striker with a malignant testicular tumour which required two surgeries and four cycles of chemotherapy.
Returning to football in January 2023, Haller would play constantly and earn himself a call up to the AFCON of the same year. Just 13 months after his cancer diagnosis, Haller would score with just nine minutes left in the final to secure the Elephants their third title.
Now playing for Utrecht - the club he spent two years at between 2015 and 2017 - Haller will be hoping he can cement his status as an Ivorian legend with consecutive AFCON victories.
Now playing at NK Maribor in the Slovenian top division, Jean Michaël Seri featured 80 times for now Premier League mainstays Fulham between 2018 and 2021. Throughout his time at the club, the Cottagers struggled to stay in the first division, meaning Seri only played 32 of his games in the top flight.
Seri only scored once in the Premier League. However, it was a magnificent long-range strike against Burnley in a 4-2 victory at Craven Cottage, and it would secure him Goal of the Month in August 2018.
Also enjoying stints at Nice and Hull City, Seri was part of Ivory Coast's AFCON winning side of 2023. Though he is vying for a competitive midfield spot in Faé's squad, Seri is unlikely to get many minutes this tournament. However, he will still be hopeful he can return to Slovenia with a medal come the end of the competition.
When Gbamin signed for Everton in the summer of 2019, the club hoped he would solidify their midfield as the team pushed on from an 8th placed finish the season before.
However, injuries would ruin the defensive player's time in England. Signing for £25m, Gbamin would only make eight appearances for the Merseyside club. After injuring his thigh two games into the 2019 season, he would suffer two huge further setbacks during his recovery and not play for the club again until April 2021. A week after returning, he injured his knee again and did not recover until October. After failed loans at CSKA Moscow and Trabzonspor, Everton terminated Gbamin’s contract in September 2023.
Since leaving the Premier League, Gbamin has spent time at Dunkerque, Nantes, and Zürich, before settling this season at Metz. Managing to stay relatively injury-free, Gbamin has converted to more of a centre back role than the traditional defensive-midfield role you would expect of him.
It will be interesting to see if Faé deploys him in the midfield or at the back, though he is unlikely to start due to the high quality the Elephants have in both positions. Players such as Seko Fofana, Franck Kessie, and Ibrahim Sangare will keep him out of the midfield, and a lengthy line of top Europe-based centre backs will prevent him from sitting deeper. It is likely the Ivorian’s age and experience will be key around the camp and off the bench for the club.
