Echo reported that Liverpool is facing the challenge of missing players from the African Cup of Nations, and Salah may miss many games.
In recent years, Liverpool have become accustomed to losing some of their star players mid-season to the African Cup of Nations. Liverpool have had players represented at the past six Africa Cup of Nations since 2013 and this will continue this winter.
Salah is expected to captain Egypt at the African Cup of Nations in Morocco next month. The competition will start on December 21 and he will miss at least three Liverpool games. Salah could miss up to eight Liverpool games if Egypt make it all the way to the final in Rabat on January 18. Although Salah has struggled for Slott's side this season, his absence will still have a significant impact on the team, especially considering that Liverpool will face Tottenham and Arsenal during the African Cup of Nations.
Of course, this is not the first time Liverpool has lost Salah in the middle of the season. It can be said that in the past ten years, Liverpool has paid more and more attention to the African Cup of Nations. However, Liverpool are not the only Premier League team to lose players due to the African Cup of Nations.
Bournemouth also has players participating in the African Cup of Nations, but does not include main forward Semenho. The Ghana international's national team unexpectedly failed to qualify for the African Cup of Nations. This is the first time since 2004 that Ghana has failed to qualify for the African Cup of Nations and the second time since 1990. This means Bournemouth can continue to rely on the in-form Semenho throughout the Premier League Christmas fixtures and New Year period.
However, with the 25-year-old forward continuing to be linked with transfer rumors with a number of top Premier League teams, Ghana's failure to qualify for the African Cup of Nations may give clubs interested in signing him more incentive to negotiate mid-season.
It is reported that Liverpool is one of the clubs paying attention to Semenho, with previous reports stating that he is regarded as Salah's long-term successor. If Liverpool hope to sign the Ghana international mid-season, they will benefit from the fact that he will not miss any games due to the African Cup of Nations. Ghana's failure to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations therefore also provides an opportunity for Liverpool to engage in transfer negotiations during the January transfer window without having to wait for Semenho's international break to be over.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether Liverpool will strengthen their squad in January and whether they will make a move to sign Semenho. Semenho started his career with Bristol City and after performing well in the English Championship, he joined Bournemouth in January 2023 for £10 million. Although he is a Ghanaian international, he still qualifies as a local player due to being born in Chelsea. That identity is also attractive to Liverpool, who only listed five truly homegrown players in their Premier League squad at the start of the season.
At the same time, Liverpool can only list five local training players in the Champions League lineup. Limited to a quota of 22 people, Federico Chiesa has to be excluded. Although Chiesa is eligible as a substitute under new UEFA rules due to Giovanni Leoni's season-ending injury, Liverpool are still restricted by squad registration rules.
If a team wishes to list a full 25-man roster, they cannot select more than 17 overseas players. Of the remaining eight places, there can only be a maximum of four players trained by the association. Semenho will be among the players trained by the association and could occupy those positions alongside Frimpong and Freddie Woodman. Liverpool can register up to three new players for their squad if they reach the knockout stages of the Champions League. Therefore, if they sign Semenho in January, he would be free to join the team without having to remove other players.
Taken together, these factors make signing the 25-year-old player more attractive. Whether the transfer rumors will finally come true, whether it is January or the summer, only time will tell.