Manchester United winger Amad Diallo appears to have confirmed that he will not take part in the African Cup of Nations after making his return to action for the Premier League giants over the weekend.
If there was a single positive Manchester United fans could take out of that dismal loss away at Nottingham Forest, it was the impact Amad Diallo made off the bench in the second half.
Making his first appearance of the entire campaign after a lengthy knee injury, the £19 million signing from Atalanta posed more of a threat in his 36 minutes on the City Ground turf than Antony has throughout most of his performances across the last four months combined.
And, in a rare boost for an embattled Erik ten Hag, the Red Devils look set to retain Amad’s services over the coming weeks. While Andre Onana looks destined to depart for the African Cup of Nations – called up to represent Cameroon – Amad took to Twitter seemingly to confirm that he will not be part of the host nation’s roster.
Amad Diallo could miss AFCON
“Not true,” was his response to Sky Sports’ claim that he would be taking part in a tournament due to kick off in the Ivory Coast on January 13th.
Amad was outstanding on loan at Sunderland in 2022/23. If it wasn’t for an injury he picked up in pre-season, the 21-year-old would likely have featured with far more regularity this term, especially with Antony out of sorts and Jadon Sancho unlikely to ever again kick a ball in United’s iconic red shirt.
His belated return to action, then, is certainly a case of better late than never.
Manchester United boost
“He looked lively,” former Man United defender Danny Simpson told MUTV after that Forest reverse. “He looked sharp when he come on, and he’s getting back as well and doing the defensive side.
“He’s another option to have, a good option to have, just unlucky to get injured at the start of the season.
“We know he can score goals and create goals.”
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