Playing for 90
Fansided

European clubs set for tough January as stars head out for AFCON and Asian Cup

Teams across Europe will have to contend with the loss of key players including Mo Salah, Son Heung-min and Victor Osimhen

ByKaushik G Viswanath|
Tottenham's Son Heung-min (left) and Liverpool's Mo Salah (right) will be absent from Premier League for the next several weeks while on national team duty.
Tottenham's Son Heung-min (left) and Liverpool's Mo Salah (right) will be absent from Premier League for the next several weeks while on national team duty. | Clive Brunskill/GettyImages
4 of 6

Serie A (Italy)

There's no escaping the player exodus for AFCON and the Asian Cup for clubs in the Italian top flight. A total of 51 players will miss up to one month's action in Serie A. That includes last season's MVP and top scorer Victor Osimhen, who will lead Nigeria's charge in the AFCON.

Victor Osimhen celebrates a goal against Salernitana
Victor Osimhen led Napoli to Serie A honors last season, but the reigning champs will be without their top scorer for a while. | FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/GettyImages

The top two teams in the league, Inter and Juventus, will continue their charge to the title without losing any players to national commitments.

Here's a look at some of the key players who will leave for the Ivory Coast (AFCON) and Qatar (Asian Cup):

Club

Players Missing

Atalanta

Ademola Lookman (Nigeria), El Bilal Touré (Mali)

AC Milan

Samuel Chukwueze (Nigeria), Ismaël Bennacer (Algeria)

Lazio

Daichi Kamada (Japan)

Napoli

Victor Osimhen (Nigeria), Andre Frank Zambo-Anguissa (Cameroon)

Roma

Evan N'Dicka (Ivory Coast), Houssem Aouar (Algeria), Serdar Azmoun (Iran)

Home/International Soccer