Nations Cup under-21 players
Many of the key players at the Africa Cup of Nations finals will be well known to supporters but each tournament throws up new stars, many of them young and up-and-coming players.
SuperSport.com looks at five players aged 21 and under who are possible contenders to make waves at this month’s tournament in the Ivory Coast.
Karim Konate: Hosts Ivory Coast have yet to settle on their attack for the Cup of Nations opener against Guinea Bissau on Saturday but the 19-year-old has every chance of being included in the starting line-up, perhaps alongside Sebastian Haller. Konate will only be 20 in March but already has 13 caps, all but one of them as a substitute as coach Jean Louis Gasset has sought to expose systematically him to the rigours of international competition. He has had plenty of exposure in recent months, also competing with his Austrian club Salzburg in the Champions League. Konate’s speed and technique were already evident when before joined the Mimosifcom Academy, the training centre located in the Abidjan suburb of Sol Béni and which belongs to the ASEC Abidjan. He quickly broke through into the first team and was scoring frequently, which led to him being targeted by many European clubs. “I chose Salzburg. It was the best choice given their past with African players and with the aim of developing myself,” he explained. ”Salzburg came to Abidjan and then invited me to visit their facilities. I said to myself that this was the club for me.” He signed a contract until 2027 and earned ASEC a 3.5 million euros transfer fee.
Ernest Nuamah: One of the many success stories to come out of the Right to Dream Academy in Ghana, Nuamah is now at one of the biggest clubs in Europe and not yet 21 years old. Last season he
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