Algeria announced their squad for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations on Friday afternoon, confirming significant blows for Man City and West Ham.
Riyad Mahrez and Saïd Benrahma were both included and will therefore miss several important matches for their respective clubs.
It’s been suggested on a number of occasions that this already once-postponed edition of AFCON would be cancelled but as things stand, it’s going ahead and will begin in Cameroon on 9 January.
Algeria are in Group E and their campaign gets underway on 11 January against Sierra Leone.
They then take on Equatorial Guinea on 16 January before their group stage schedule concludes with a clash against Ivory Coast on 20 January.
The 2019 winners will be looking to go all the way again, though, and if they do, the final is on 6 February.
Pep Guardiola will have to do without his top goalscorer for the duration of Algeria’s involvement, and David Moyes is in the same boat with influential winger Benrahma.
Should Mahrez skipper the North African nation to the title, he would miss Premier League fixtures against Chelsea, Southampton and possibly Brentford.
Meanwhile, Benrahma, who has featured in all 17 of West Ham’s Premier League fixtures so far this season, would miss league matches against Leeds, Man United and possibly Watford.
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