INTERNATIONAL ROUNDUP
- BY SEAMUS MCGREGOR
- 7 hours ago
- 2 min read
Both of Sunderland's remaining AFCON participants have made the final, meaning we are guaranteed to welcome a winner back to Wearside, but unfortunately it's likely that neither Lad will feature in the final...
DIARRA
Habib Diarra's Senegal progressed to the final of the African Cup of Nations yesterday thanks to a 1-0 win over Egypt, Sadio Mane finding the back of the net. However, Diarra is ineligible to play in the last game of the tournament due to picking up multiple bookings during the knockout stage. He was shown a yellow card before half time when a confrontation was sparked by a foul from Mo Salah on his former liverpool teammate Mane. While Salah and Mane looked to calm the situation, Diarra received a booking for his involvement in the incident.
TALBI
AFCON hosts Morocco have also made the final which guarantees that either Diarra or Talbi will come back with a winner's medal. However, Talbi has seen his involvement in the tournament extremely limited, making just one appearance as a late substitute for his country. Unless the manager's hand is forced due to injuries in the game, Walid Regragui is unlikely to trust Talbi with substantial gametime in the final after barely using the youngster all tournament. The benefit to both Diarra and Talbi not playing in the final is that they'll return to Sunderland well-rested and match fit!
ISIDOR
In other news, Wilson Isidor is said to have finally agreed to join the Haitian national team for the 2026 World Cup, switching nationality from his birthplace of France. This is a decision which has been on the cards for a while - when Sunderland won promotion to the Premier League, Wilson even paraded a Haiti flag around Wembley. The 25-year-old reportedly just needs to get the paperwork formalised before he can complete the switch. Haiti are clearly trying to bolster their ranks to become more competitive at the upcoming World Cup. As well as Isidor, they have been trying to convince former Crystal Palace striker Odsonne Edouard to make the switch from France at the age of 27.
