Arteta wants player safety guaranteed for AFCON

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says he wants to see player safety guaranteed at the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations.

Rumours that the AFCON could be moved or postponed have circulated in the media in the past week, with concerns over the Omicron variant of Covid-19 as well as separatist military threats in Cameroon, the host country of the tournament.

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The Confederation of African (CAF) has moved to dismiss rumours that the AFCON won’t go ahead of planned, but the Gunners boss has revealed he and other Premier League managers are wary about the tournament and they want assurances players will be safe to travel.

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“I would like them to guarantee the welfare of our players, and if that is not the case obviously we are not going to be comfortable,” Arteta said as quoted by the Evening Standard.

“I think not only Arsenal, but any club that has to allow players to go on those duties.”

The AFCON is scheduled to run from January 9 to February 6 across five cities in Cameroon.

Arsenal are set to have Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon), Nicolas Pepe (Ivory Coast), Thomas Partey (Ghana) and Mohamed Elneny (Egypt) leave their ranks to play in the Nations Cup.