With many stars shining on the big stage that is the Africa Cup of Nations, we highlight three players who had impressive tournaments and whom fans should keep an eye out for going forward.
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Omar Marmoush
Although he might not be that young at 25 years old, Omar Marmoush has a tremendous amount of ability and a bright future ahead of him. The Egypt international burst on to the scene during the previous iteration of the continental showpiece in Cameroon, starting every game under Carlos Queiroz en route to the final against Senegal.
However, since then, the attacker struggled to take his career to the next level, with a sub-par stint at Wolfsburg that saw him go out on loan a couple times. They subsequently decided to let the forward leave on a free, allowing another German side, Eintracht Frankfurt to sign him, and since arriving at the Deutsche Bank Park, Marmoush has been flying.
Just 17 games into the 2023/24 Bundesliga campaign and the Cairo native is already having his best goalscoring season in the league with nine goals, and 14 strikes across all competitions. He took this form into the AFCON in the Ivory Coast and after not starting against Mozambique, he looked like the Pharaohs' best player even with the presence of Mohamed Salah in Rui Vitoria's side. The attacker posed the most threat against Ghana and Cape Verde, but for whatever reason, in the round of 16 the head coach decided to start him on the bench and the record African champions would be eliminated on penalties by DR Congo. He is definitely a player to look out for.
Simon Adingra
From north Africa to west Africa, we move to Ivory Coast's Simon Adingra. The 22-year-old is not only one of Africa's best young players, but perhaps one of the best youngsters in the world off the strength of his performances during his home nation's triumphant campaign in this past AFCON.
A product of the Right to Dream academy, Adingra naturally made the switch from their Ghana set-up to their parent club Danish outfit FC Nordsjaelland. It was there where Brighton Hove Albion spotted his capabilities and after only one season in the Superliga, he became a Premier League player. However, the Seagulls first loaned him out to Union Saint-Gilloise for a season before they integrated him into their starting XI in 2023/24, and he has looked right at home since.
Roberto De Zerbi has shown a tremendous amount of faith in the winger, starting him in 14 of the 19 games the Abobo native has been available for in the league. He has seven goals in all competitions under the Italian tactician this season, but it was his performances in his home nation that have catapulted his reputation.
After recovering from a hamstring injury during the AFCON, he scored in Ivory Coast's dramatic quarter-final win over Mali, before saving his best performance for the final, where he assisted the two goals that would see his nation be crowned champions of Africa for a third time in its history.
He even scored a brace upon his Premier League return against Sheffield United, and is a player who looks to have a tremendously high ceiling.
Lamine Camara
Now, we take a look at another west African in Lamine Camara. The 20-year-old is an exceptional talent just based off his performances at the latest AFCON. He is an alumni of the famed Generation Foot academy in Senegal, where the likes of Sadio Mane, Ismaila Sarr and Papiss Cisse also began their football journey, and like them, he made the switch to Metz, where he is currently playing his football.
Even at his young age, Camara seems to be an important player for the Ligue 1 side, having started 17 of the 20 matches he has been available for. The young playmaker made his mark at CHAN 2022, winning the competition and the Best Young Player award, before going on to be crowned Best Player at the U/20 Africa Cup of Nations shortly afterwards. While one might've presumed that he would wither under the bright lights of the 2023 AFCON, he shone brightly in a star-studded Senegal side.
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He scored two brilliant goals on his competition debut against Gambia, and for the rest of the tournament showed his versatility by playmaking and defending as well. When head coach Aliou Cisse benched him for their 2-0 win over Guinea in their final group-stage game, he urged the public to not overhype the youngster, but it's hard not to get excited over players as good as he is this early in his career.
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