Manchester United are preparing to temporarily lose three key players in Brian Mbeumo, Amad and Nouseir Mazraoui as they depart to take part in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). The Moroccan-hosted tournament opens on Sunday with the home team taking on Comoros.
The final is scheduled to take place in Rabat on Sunday, January 18th, and United fans are keen to know when the trio will return. New predictions from the AFCON supercomputer suggest hosts Morocco could win their first AFCON title since 1976. This prediction, made by the experts at BookmakersCameroun.com, shows Morocco narrowly defeating Senegal 1-0 in the final.
If this scenario were to play out, United full-back Mazraoui would be unavailable until the away game against Arsenal on January 25, replacing Ruben Amorim.
Meanwhile, Mbeumo’s Cameroon are expected to be eliminated early in the group stage and could return for United’s away game at Leeds on January 4. While such a result would be disappointing for Cameroon and Mbeumo, it would certainly be a boost for United, who could have one of their key players back sooner rather than later.
The supercomputer also predicts that Senegal will defeat Amad’s Ivory Coast 3-0 in the semi-finals. However, he will miss the third-place match, the Manchester derby, to be held on January 17, in which Ivory Coast is expected to lose to Uganda on penalties.
According to predictions, Amad could return to the team around the same time as Mazraoui, possibly in time for the game against Arsenal in late January. In what may be the most surprising result of the tournament, Egypt and its star Mohamed Salah are expected to lose 1-0 to Comoros in the round of 16.
South Africa and Algeria, who have qualified for next year’s World Cup, are expected to advance to the quarterfinals, while Tunisia, another World Cup participant, is expected to be eliminated before the final tournament.
With Mbeumo, Amad and Mazraoui sidelined for the time being, Amorim faces the difficult task of finding a solution, and former United defender Paul Parker believes it will be an incredibly difficult task.
He said: “It’s impossible for Man United to cope with the loss of Mbeumo when he leaves for AFCON. They can’t do that. They don’t have players close to his level so they will struggle without him.”
“He will be a big miss and I don’t understand how they can do anything without him. We have to remember that he is one of the best players in the league and definitely Manchester United’s best player.”
“He’s a very scary player on the right wing, but who should replace him? Amad Diallo has also left. So will they play Mason Mount or Zirksee? Hmm, I can’t imagine how that will go.”
“Of course, Amado would be a huge failure as well,” Parker added. “Man United may have to change their whole approach because without them nothing comes from the right side. Amad is a big threat and you can see that in every game. No one can replace him because no one can match him.”
“If you combine that with both of them being out, it’s going to be a nightmare. It’s going to be a nightmare, and I don’t really have much faith in other players being able to step up to their level, which you would normally expect at a big club like Manchester United.”
