Man Utd to make do without their whole right side while Liverpool and Sunderland lose SIX key men: Premier League clubs who will be most impacted by losing players to AFCON - ranked

Number of absentees: 2 - Omar Marmoush (Egypt), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Algeria)

If this were a list ranking teams by how much individual quality each team will lose for AFCON, then clearly Manchester City would be towards the very top. Yet, such are the riches of depth in Pep Guardiola's squad, they will barely be troubled by Omar Marmoush and Rayan Ait-Nouri's exits, especially given the Catalan manager has openly reiterated his desire to trim down his roster. That's why they actually rank bottom.

Marmoush has missed much of this season with a knee injury, while Ait-Nouri has been sidelined with an ankle injury after joining from Wolves. City will probably be just fine.

Number of absentees: 2 - Pape Matar Sarr (Senegal), Yves Bissouma (Mali)

Despite starting the season in fine form - you know, that part of the campaign where Tottenham actually looked decent - Pape Matar Sarr has tumbled down the Spurs pecking order in recent weeks, with Thomas Frank preferring the likes of Rodrigo Bentancur, Joao Palhinha, Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray in midfield.

Yves Bissouma, meanwhile, is yet to make an appearance in the Frank era and has only recently recovered from a knee injury ahead of an expected January sale. His inclusion by Mali means he may well have played his last game for the club.

Ghana's absence from the tournament means summer signing Mohammed Kudus will, however, remain at Spurs through the winter.

Number of absentees: 2 - Tawanda Chirewa (Zimbabwe), Emmanuel Agbadou (Cote d'Ivoire)

Long gone are the days of Wolves boasting elite-level talent such as Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho, while their Premier League status is now under serious threat after a dreadful start to the season. Fortunately for Rob Edwards, his squad hasn't been hit as hard as was previously anticipated.

The Molineux club are still losing Tawanda Chirewa and Emmanuel Agbadou, but the likes of Tolu Arokodare and Marshall Munetsi have been overlooked for AFCON by Nigeria and Zimbabwe, respectively.

Number of absentees: 1 - Carlos Baleba (Cameroon)

In another life, Carlos Baleba would have joined Manchester United this summer, but Brighton were not interested in sanctioning a sale. His form has since nosedived this season, but given the Red Devils are still keen on Baleba given his outrageous potential, it will be fairly difficult for the Seagulls to do without him regardless.

Number of absentees: 2 - Dango Ouattara (Burkina Faso), Frank Onyeka (Nigeria)

A summer of mass change left many believing Brentford would struggle in the fight against relegation this term. Keith Andrews clearly took that personally, and his Bees are flying. However, they will face a challenge without being able to call upon £42.5m ($56m) winger Dango Ouattara, who has been a massive hit after joining from Bournemouth, as well as midfielder Frank Onyeka.

Number of absentees: 2 - Aaron Wan-Bissaka (DR Congo), El Hadji Malick Diouf (Senegal)

West Ham are in their own battle to beat the drop and have been rejuvenated by the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo as manager. But the Portuguese boss is facing some significant squad upheaval during the four weeks of AFCON. First-choice full-backs Aaron Wan-Bissaka and El Hadji Malick Diouf have both jetted off to Morocco for the tournament, limiting Nuno's options to shore up a far from fearless defence.

Number of absentees: 2 - Ibrahim Sangare, Willy Boly (both Cote d'Ivoire)

Few would have predicted last season's surprise package Nottingham Forest being in a relegation scrap this time around, but that's the situation they find themselves in at the City Ground. Sean Dyche, their third manager already this term, is also tasked with getting their Europa League campaign back on track.

The better news for Forest is they are only losing two players to AFCON, with star midfielder Ibrahim Sangare and back-up defender Willy Boly called into Cote d'Ivoire's ranks, while Ola Aina and Taiwo Awoniyi have been overlooked by Nigeria following their recent injury problems.

Number of absentees: 1 - Mohamed Salah (Egypt)

There's only one club on this list that will be impacted more by losing a single player than Liverpool and Mohamed Salah. Sure, he hasn't been firing on all cylinders for a struggling Reds side this season, and his public falling out with Arne Slot (and Jamie Carragher) has only served to stir the Anfield pot, but the 'Egyptian King' still reigns on Merseyside and they will be losing one of the world's most fearsome goal threats.

Number of absentees: 1 - Ismaila Sarr (Senegal)

Though Jean-Philippe Mateta, Marc Guehi and Adam Wharton are Crystal Palace's star attractions nowadays, they would be a far worse team if they didn't have Ismaila Sarr.

Once more, Senegal's tag as a team likely to go all the way means the Eagles could be without Sarr for a month. That's already a scary prospect, but when you consider how small Oliver Glasner's squad already is and that they will have European and cup commitments to tend to in that span, it could become a nightmare pretty quickly.

Number of absentees: 3 - Lyle Foster (South Africa), Axel Tuanzebe (DR Congo), Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia)

To Burnley's credit, they have half a chance of beating the drop this season. They are not the team marooned to the foot of the Premier League table and have picked up some respectable results on their return to the top-flight.

Tough times could be coming, however. Striker Lyle Foster is heading to AFCON, as are ex-Manchester United duo Axel Tuanzebe and Hannibal Mejbri. Perhaps the silver lining for Scott Parker is that this trio all play in different positions, so his squad won't feel completely depleted in one area.

Number of absentees: 3 - Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey, Samuel Chukwueze (all Nigeria)

A summer of transfer malpractice has seen a consistently mid-table side in Fulham become embroiled in a relegation scrap this season. Marco Silva's future is already in jeopardy, so he'll be delighted to know he'll be losing some of his best players over the next couple of months.

Alex Iwobi, one of the most underrated players in the Premier League, will join Calvin Bassey and Samuel Chukwueze for Nigeria's AFCON campaign, with the Super Eagles looking to end their run of 13 years without a continental trophy.

Number of absentees: 2 - Iliman Ndiaye, Idrissa Gueye (both Senegal)

David Moyes will be sad to see the back of two Senegalese midfielders who provide very different qualities. Iliman Ndiaye, or 'Skilly-man' to the kids, has run Everton's attack ever since he joined the club in 2024 and is now recognised as one of the Premier League's best players outside the 'Big Six'. Meanwhile, veteran anchor Idrissa Gueye has long ensured that the Toffees don't give up too many chances through the middle of the pitch, and his absence will surely be felt off the ball.

Number of absentees: 3 - Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon), Amad Diallo (Cote d'Ivoire), Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco)

Ruben Amorim must surely have benefitted from having extra time on the training pitch with his Manchester United players so far this season, with his side not competing in Europe and having been dumped out of the Carabao Cup in the second round back in August. There is less of a strain on his squad, but there soon will be a challenge to contend with.

United have lost their entire right-hand side of their starting XI, with versatile defender Noussair Mazraoui, winger turned wing-back Amad Diallo and star forward Bryan Mbeumo all likely to headline AFCON for their respective nations. It could be a long month ahead at Old Trafford.

Number of absentees: 6 - Chemsdine Talbi (Morocco), Reinildo (Mozambique), Habib Diarra (Senegal), Bertrand Traore (Burkina Faso), Arthur Masuaku, Noah Sadiki (both DR Congo)

Sunderland's incredible transformation has been among the most fun storylines of this Premier League campaign. The Black Cats were only promoted back to the top tier by the skin of their teeth in May, edging out Sheffield United in a dramatic play-off final that was decided with the last kick of the match. Now, there is talk of them competing for a place in Europe.

The real test of those credentials will come from December to January, with head coach Regis Le Bris forfeiting six star players to AFCON, including exciting winger Chemsdine Talbi, who scored their winner at Chelsea, and Granit Xhaka's reliable midfield partner Noah Sadiki. If Sunderland can maintain their form throughout the winter, however, they will indeed be seen as the real deal.