The 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations is taking place in Côte d'Ivoire from January 13 to February 11. AFCON remains the most prestigious nations’ tournament on the African continent and it is a competition where top stars show their quality as they seek to win the ultimate trophy for their country. ALSO READ: Afcon 2023: Who could star at the tournament in Ivory Coast? Undeniably, some top players miss the tournament due to either injuries, being overlooked by coaches or, above all, being restricted by their clubs. Weekend Sport takes a look at five top players who will miss the 2023 AFCON. Thomas Partey (Ghana) The Black Stars will travel to Cote d’Ivoire without their vice-captain Thomas Partey who has been battling with injuries for some time. He last played club football for Arsenal on August 10, 2023 when they beat Manchester City 1-0 in the Premier League. Partey was originally named in Ghana's 55-man provisional squad but, after the technical team led by coach Chris Hughton examined his situation, he was dropped in the country’s 27-man final list as he needs ample time to get to his best. Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria) Ndidi was part of Nigeria's 25-man final squad for the tournament but he has been declared unfit by Leicester City after missing their 4-2 Championship win over Huddersfield Town over the weekend. He has thus been ruled out of the 2023 AFCON forcing Nigeria head coach Jose Peseiro to hand a call up to 23-year-old Alhassan Yussuf who has been phenomenal in the Belgian Jupiler Pro League for Royal Antwerp as his replacement. Eric Bailly (Côte d'Ivoire) The Villarreal centre back is going to miss the African Cup of Nations for the first time since the 2015 edition in Equatorial Guinea. Bailly, 29, has had a torrid half season at Besiktas playing just nine games in all competitions before switching to former club Villarreal on January 1, 2024 but his move didn’t stop Elephants coach Jean-Louis Gasset from dropping him from his 27-man final squad for the 2023 AFCON tournament. With 49 appearances already for Côte D'Ivoire, the former Manchester United defender will be dearly missed as his country attempts to win what would be their third AFCON title, this time on their home soil. Wilfried Zaha ( Côte d'Ivoire) The mercurial forward hasn't had much success since switching allegiance from England to play for Cote D'Ivoire in 2017. He has made 31 appearances from which he scored 5 goals. However, one thing which cannot be taken from Zaha is his huge influence in games. The Galatasaray forward has been superb anytime he plays for the Elephants. But five goals in 13 games for Galatasaray this season were not enough to convince coach Jean-Louis Gasset to name him in his final squad for the AFCON finals. Saïd Benrahma (Algeria) The West Ham winger will not be in Cote D'Ivoire with the Desert Foxes of Algeria. Benrahma has been out of form this season losing his starting berth at West Ham to Ghana's Mohammed Kudus. He has made just four appearances for West Ham in all competitions this season and he has been overlooked by Algerian head coach Djamel Belmadi for the impending AFCON 2023.
