Luton's on-loan Manchester City defender earns Burkina Faso call for AFCON

​Luton’s on-loan Manchester City defender Issa Kabore has been called up by Burkina Faso head coach Hubert Velud for their Africa Cup of Nations campaign which begins in the Ivory Coast later this month.

The Stallions have had a good record at the tournament in the last decade, finishing second in 2013, third in 2017 and fourth in 2021, qualifying for seven of the last eight events and 13 in total.

The 22-year-old has played 32 times for his country since making his debut in 2019, including seven appearances at the 2021 competition, where he was named Best Young Player of the Tournament, as Burkina Faso lost 3-1 to Senegal in the semi-final, finishing fourth after a penalty shoot-out loss to Cameroon in their third place play-off match.

Burkina Faso, who have also included Aston Villa’s Bertrand Traore and AFC Bournemouth’s Dango Ouattara, will be in Group D as they start their tournament against Mauritania at the Bouaké Stadium on Tuesday, January 16. They then take on Algeria on Saturday, January 20 and Angola on Tuesday, January 23, the final match staged at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium, as Kabore will miss the FA Cup clash against Bolton Wanderers this weekend and the Premier League trip to Burnley scheduled for Monday, January 15.

Should the Stallions get through their group, then Kabore, who has made 15 Premier League appearances since his summer move from the Etihad, will be absent for the home game against Brighton on Tuesday, January 30, while he could miss the trip to Newcastle United on Saturday, February 4. If Burkina Faso go all the way to the final on Sunday, February 11, it would rule Kabore out of the home match with Sheffield United which takes place the day before.

Full squad

Goalkeepers: Hervé Koffi; Hilel Konaté; Kilian Nikiema; Sébastien Tou. Defenders: Issa Kaboré; Steeve Yago; Issoufou Dayo; Nasser Djiga; Edmond Tapsoba; Adamo Nagalo; Abdoul Razack Guiebre; Valentin Nouma. Midfielders: Blati Touré; Adama Guira; Dramane Salou; Ismahila Ouedraogo; Sacha Bansé; Gustavo Sangaré; Stéphane Aziz Ky. Forwards: Bertrand Traoré; Dango Ouattara; Mamady Alex Bangre; Cheikh Djibril Ouattara; Hassane Bandé; Mohamed Konaté; Fessal Tapsoba; Cédric Badolo.