Cyriaque Irié withdraws from Burkina Faso squad due to ongoing recovery

Burkina Faso international Cyriaque Irié will not take part in the Stallions’ November friendlies despite being named in coach Brama Traoré’s latest squad.

The FC Freiburg winger is still recovering from an illness that has kept him sidelined for several weeks.

Irié, who last featured for Burkina Faso in their match against Egypt, has not played for his club since returning from international duty.

His agent explained to journalist Ablam Gnamesso that the player is still in a delicate phase of recovery and has only recently resumed light training.

“That’s right. It’s been a few weeks since the boy (Cyriaque Irié) last played with his club. Since returning from international duty after the last match against Egypt, he’s been ill. He was sick for a month and didn’t train. Now, he’s gradually resuming training. He’s rejoining the group and starting a new physical preparation program. That explains his absence from the pitch,” the agent said.

According to him, Irié has not yet reached full fitness and is following a personalized recovery plan at Freiburg.

Although Traoré included him in the national team list for the upcoming friendlies, the player’s club made it clear that returning to international action too soon would be counterproductive.

“Indeed, he received his call-up for the Stallions’ next two friendly matches. But once again, unfortunately, he won’t be able to respond to this call-up. He’s not at 100%, and it’s been quite a while since he’s played much — one to two months. He’s slowly getting back into training with the group, so he’s not really at 100% fitness to be able to respond to this call-up,” the agent added.

He further revealed that discussions had taken place with Burkina Faso coach Brama Traoré to clarify the situation.

“I had a conversation with the national team coach (Brama Traoré). The club had to send a letter explaining that it wasn’t the right time for Cyriaque to join the national team because there’s a specific training program in place for him. He’s not really ready for selection. So that’s why, unfortunately, he won’t be there again,” he concluded.

The 22-year-old winger has made four international appearances since his debut on 2 June 2025, scoring twice for Burkina Faso.

Since joining Freiburg in July 2025, the Vavoua-born forward has been valued at €8 million and earns an estimated annual salary of €1.13 million.

His German club is set to play its tenth Bundesliga match of the season against St. Pauli this weekend, though Irié will not feature as he continues his rehabilitation in the hope of returning to full fitness later this month.