Africa Cup of Nations prepares for take-off

Fifteen players from the Barclays Premier League will be representing their countries at this month’s Africa Cup of Nations.

Sixteen of Africa’s leading footballing nations will be at five venues in South Africa in a tournament that runs from 19 January to 10 February.

In Group A, Aston Villa midfielder Karim El Ahmadi and Liverpool winger Oussama Assaidi will line up for Morocco as they look to progress past Angola, Cape Verde Islands and a South Africa squad without Everton midfielder Steven Pienaar, who has retired from international duty.

West Bromwich Albion’s Democratic Republic of Congo midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu will take on Queens Park Rangers’ Samba Diakite, of Mali, and West Ham United forward Modibo Maiga in Group B. Those two sides will also encounter powerhouses Ghana and minnows Niger, who have yet to progress beyond the group stages in the tournament.

Defending champions Zambia will have Southampton forward Emmanuel Mayuka, who moved to the South Coast after impressing for the Chipolopolo in the 2012 tournament. In Group C, the 22-year-old striker will face the Chelsea pair of John Obi Mikel and Victor Moses, of Nigeria, as well as Burkina Faso and Ethiopia.

The final group has five Barclays Premier League players competing for qualification for the knockout stage. Tottenham Hotspur striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who has come out of international retirement, will lead the line for Togo against Ivory Coast, who boast six Premier League players in their number.

Ivorian six

Newcastle United’s combative midfielder Cheick Tiote and Wigan Athletic striker Arouna Kone are joined by the Manchester City trio of Yaya Toure, his brother Kolo, and Abdul Razak as well as Arsenal forward Gervinho. Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba is also looking forward to reacquainting himself with some of his former English top-flight adversaries. Algeria and Tunisia complete Group D.

The group stage will be played between 19 and 30 January, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the quarter-finals. The semi-finals will take place on Wednesday 6 February, the third-place play-off occurs three days later and the final is on 10 February.

Africa Cup of Nations groups

Group A
Angola, Cape Verde Islands, Morocco, South Africa.

Group B
DR Congo, Ghana, Mali, Niger.

Group C
Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Zambia.

Group D
Algeria, Ivory Coast, Togo, Tunisia.

Fixtures

Saturday 19 January
South Africa v Cape Verde Islands; Angola v Morocco

Sunday 20 January
Ghana v Congo DR; Mali v Niger

Monday 21 January
Zambia v Ethiopia; Nigeria v Burkina Faso

Tuesday 22 January
Ivory Coast v Togo; Tunisia v Algeria

Wednesday 23 January
South Africa v Angola; Morocco v Cape Verde Islands

Thursday 24 January
Ghana v Mali; Niger v DR Congo

Friday 25 January
Zambia v Nigeria; Burkina Faso v Ethiopia

Saturday 26 January
Ivory Coast v Tunisia; Algeria v Togo

Sunday 27 January
Cape Verde Islands v Angola; Morocco v South Africa

Monday 28 January
DR Congo v Mali; Niger v Ghana

Tuesday 29 January
Burkina Faso v Zambia; Ethiopia v Nigeria

Wednesday 30 January
Algeria v Ivory Coast; Togo v Tunisia

Saturday 2 February
Winner Group B v Runner-up Group A; Winner Group A v Runner-up Group B

Sunday 3 February
Winner Group D v Runner-up Group C; Winner Group C v Runner-up Group D

Wednesday 6 February
Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 2; Winner QF1 v Winner QF4

Saturday 9 February
Loser SF1 v Loser SF2

Sunday 10 February
Winner SF1 v Winner SF2

Premier League representatives