THE AFRICAN Cup of Nations kicks off next month and it could pose a bit of a headache for Rangers.
The tournament takes place in Cameroon from the 9th of January through to the 6th of February and features 24 teams from the African continent.
Fortunately for Rangers, if for Fashion Sakala, Zambia failed to qualify therefore the popular striker won’t be missing any domestic action.
The bad news is that Nigeria did qualify which means the Light Blues will potentially be missing three key players for up to a month.
The key players, of course, are Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey and Leon Balogun.
Don't panic though, Rangers won’t necessarily feel the full impact of their absence, should they be called up, as expected, for the showcase tournament.
This is because the winter break returns to the Scottish Premiership calendar on the 3rd of January until the 21st.
It means the trio will miss the club’s winter training camp but the fact there are no official games during this period is very helpful indeed.
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If we take a closer look at Nigeria’s fixtures in the AFCON, there is a possibility all three won’t miss any domestic matches.
The Super Eagles are in Group D alongside Egypt, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau. Gernot Rohr’s men open up their campaign against the Egyptians on the 11th of January before matches against Sudan on the 15th and Guinea-Bissau on the 19th.
The top two teams qualify automatically with the third-placed side facing a potential playoff depending on their points total.
On paper, Nigeria and Egypt should easily qualify for the Round of 16 which takes place on either the 23rd, 24th, 25th or 26th of January.
Should they progress to the Quarter-finals, they’ll play either on the 29th or 30th of January with the Semi-finals scheduled for the 2nd and 3rd of February. The final takes place on the 6th alongside the third place play-off.
If we assume the Super Eagles make it all the way to the final in the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde then the matches Aribo, Bassey and Balogun are likely to miss would be:
Stirling Albion (H) Scottish Cup – Saturday 22nd January
Livingston (H) – Scottish Premiership - Wednesday 26th January
Ross County (A) – Scottish Premiership - Saturday 29th January
Hearts (H) – Scottish Premiership - Saturday 5th February
Hibernian (H) – Scottish Premiership - Wednesday 9th February (probable given timescale and possibility of quarantine rules)
It’s safe to say the double-header against the two Edinburgh clubs are the games that stick out as being those the trio would potentially be missed the most.
Again though, that is the worst-case scenario and is dependent on Nigeria having a successful tournament.
The Super Eagles came 3rd in the competition two years ago after failing to qualify for the two tournaments prior. They were crowned champions in 2013 and have historically gone deep into the competition. The bookies have them as fifth favourites at 9/1 with Egypt strongly tipped to lift the trophy.
Given the array of talent at Nigeria's disposal, they should, realistically, progress to the latter rounds so Rangers should expect to be missing their key men for a period of time.
Of course, the players themselves may want to remain with the club although that seems unlikely and having spoken to Bassey recently, the former Leicester City kid would love nothing more than to represent his country in an international tournament.
He said: “It’s always an honour to represent your country. Obviously, the timing’s a bit hard because we’ve got games but right now I’m just fully focused at the club.
“At the end of the day if I do well here that’s what helps me get called up to Nigeria so I’m just focused on the club and giving my best performance, taking each game as it comes.
“Whatever happens, when we got to that stage we’ll look at it and see what’s best for me and take it from there.”
As much as it’s not ideal to lose three first team players for almost a month, who knows what situation Rangers will find themselves in come January. Presumably, Giovanni van Bronckhorst will look to strengthen, particularly in the defensive areas so the loss of Balogun and Bassey may not be felt as hard as it could potentially be.
The loss of Aribo will certainly be a blow. He is arguably Rangers' standout performer this season but there are a number of high-quality creators in the squad who can step up, not least Ianis Hagi.
Aribo's impressive displays, have been attracting attention from other clubs and Rangers may have a decision to make at boardroom level should scouting trips manifest into a serious offer for the 25-year-old in any case.
Overall, the upcoming AFCON shouldn’t concern supporters greatly. The squad being assembled by van Bronckhorst and co should be strong enough to cope without three players.
Regardless, there may not be much goodwill for a deep Nigeria run down Govan way.
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