Former Nigerian goalkeeper,Dosu Joseph says African players will be more attractive to European clubs now that the Africa Cup of Nations will take place in the summer.
At this year’s AFCON, in Gabon, 21 Premier League players from 12 clubs participated.
Top clubs in Europe have previously stated that reluctance to sign African players because of their absence during a crucial stage of the season in January.
Dosu says the decision by CAF executives will help reshape African football.
Changes to the competition, which will increase from 16 to 24 teams, were approved by the Confederation of African Football (Caf) at a conference in Morocco.
Players have previously been caught between duty for their national team and clubs that employ them.
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“They will become more attractive because teams won’t be thinking about losing them every two years,” said Agyemang.
Similarly, Saif Rubie,a football agent who specialises in brokering deals for African players, said the tournament’s timing had a bearing on transfer deals.
“Some clubs 100% told me they would not bring in a player if they were tied to the Cup of Nations. Now it will mean they don’t have that concern,” said Rubie, who is also the agent of former Chelsea and Ghana coach Avram Grant.
“The flip side is they will be playing in the summer, so could be late for the start of the season though it’s better to have a player missing part of August than most of January and February.
“I believe it will mean a player has more of a chance of being signed as opposed to under the old schedule.”
