Everton manager Sean Dyche provided a bleak prognosis regarding midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye’s availability for Senegal’s upcoming Africa Cup of Nations title defence.
Gueye limped off during the Toffees’ recent 2-0 Premier League loss against Tottenham after sustaining a concerning calf problem.
And following Monday’s medical examinations, Dyche admitted prospects appear dim for the defensive midfielder ahead of AFCON 2023, which starts on January 13th in Ivory Coast.
“We will have to wait and see for Idrissa, but the prospects are not encouraging,” Dyche told Everton TV after Saturday’s defeat.
Gueye had only returned to Goodison Park in September, sealing a loan switch from Paris Saint-Germain to revive his Everton career having left them for the French capital in 2019.
Strong performances this term earned Gueye a Senegal recall as Aliou Cissé’s side seeks to retain the AFCON crown won earlier this year.
But after hobbling off barely 20 minutes into the Tottenham loss, 32-year-old Gueye seems poised to heartbreakingly miss another international tournament through injury.
He was similarly ruled out of the recent World Cup in Qatar at late notice because of a tendon problem to the deep frustration of Cissé and the player himself.
“We are exhausted anyway. We just get players back and then we deal with injuries,” noted a weary Dyche as Everton battles against Premier League relegation.
With first-team regulars like André Gomes also sidelined presently, a lengthy Gueye absence would further deplete midfield options for survival-chasing Everton.
It also deals a sizeable pre-tournament blow to Africa’s top-ranked side Senegal, who face an opening Group B meeting with Zimbabwe on January 10th.
