Salah, Mbeumo, Marmoush - All Premier League players at the Africa Cup of Nations 2025
by Thobelani Moyo | by Thobelani Moyo
Mohamed Salah: Egypt's talisman out to prove critics wrong
Mohamed Salah might be in the twilight years of his career, but his name will forever be remembered by many as he has placed himself among the greatest in African and European football.
The 33-year-old is competing in what may be his last final AFCON appearance. His sights are set on glory with the Egyptian senior national team and a chance to lift the prestigious silverware for the first time in his career. Follow us as we track his progress in our AFCON 2025 predictions.
Since his debut in 2017, the Egyptian King has seen success elude him in this tournament over the past few years. He did come close in 2017 and 2021, but both editions turned out to be near misses, finishing as runners-up behind champions Cameroon and Senegal, respectively.
This could be the year in which the curse is finally broken. However, doubts surround his ability to achieve such a feat amid his declining form at Liverpool since the start of the 2025-26 Premier League season, which has put his future at Anfield in doubt.
It is beyond dispute that he has been the best thing to have happened to Liverpool in the current era of modern football. Over the weekend against Brighton & Hove Albion, his name was once again making headlines after breaking yet another record of most goal involvements (277). The previous player to hold this record was Wayne Rooney with 276 direct goal involvements for a Premier League club.
The Africa Cup of Nations has also seen him shine, scoring seven goals in five appearances. This places him five goals short of matching the icon Hassan El-Shazly's 12 goals and, even better, breaking the record and etching his name in the history books of Egypt.
Bryan Mbeumo: Is Mbeumo Cameroon's attacking engine?
While Bryan Mbeumo has yet to reach Salah's level in terms of individual honors, the bearded Cameroonian has undeniably established himself as a force to be reckoned with.
Mbeumo had one of his best runs in the previous season of the Premier League playing for Brentford. He scored 20 goals for the club and was one of the players nominated for the best player of the season.
That alone was enough to attract the attention of English giants Manchester United, who wasted no time in getting his signature for the current 2025-26 season. He has been phenomenal and has been key to United's revived attack, scoring six goals and providing one assist in 16 Premier League games.
The burden of responsibility in the Africa Cup of Nations rests squarely on him this time around. He takes on a new responsibility as Cameroon's captain and serves as a leader in attack after surprising omissions of Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Vincent Aboubakar.
In this tournament, the 26-year-old is making his first appearance. However, he was a beacon in his nation's ambitions of qualifying for the World Cup finals, even though that failed to materialize. He scored four goals and provided two assists in 11 qualifying games.
Omar Marmoush: A rising star in the making
Omar Marmoush is not yet an established legend, but one can not ignore that he is becoming a rising star for Egypt.
Marmoush was a revelation in the Bundesliga for his former employers, Eintracht Frankfurt. He scored 15 goals in 17 games for the club. As if that wasn't enough, he ranked second behind Mohamed Salah for most direct goal involvements across the top five European leagues at some point.
Such an impressive performance was enough to convince Premier League giants Manchester City and head coach Pep Guardiola that he was the right fit at Etihad Stadium. He impressed the masses in his debut season, scoring seven and providing one assist in 16 games.
However, it has been a slow start to the 2025-26 season, with injuries being a contributing factor to his declining form, failing to score in ten games.
Now, the Egyptian star is hoping to make a name for himself in Africa's continental stage. He has made 11 appearances for Egypt in the Africa Cup of Nations and has scored once during this period.
That goal was the most important of his career and one he can be proud of as he saved his nation from being eliminated from the tournament. It was an equalizer goal that held Ghana to a 2-2 draw and eventually confirmed their progression to the Round of 16.
