How many West Ham stars are playing at AFCON?

West Ham United have endured a challenging season so far, with Graham Potter getting sacked after winning just one of the five Premier League matches in 2025-26. 

The Hammers appointed former Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo as a replacement. 

While the Portuguese boss has delivered better results than his predecessor, West Ham still find themselves in the relegation zone in the Premier League table. 

In Nuno’s 11 matches in charge, the Irons have won just two games, losing and drawing five and four respectively. 

With the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) set to begin on 21 December, the East Londoners will be without two of their starting full-backs El Hadji Malick Diouf and Aaron Wan-Bissaka during a busy period. 

Diouf has been impressive for West Ham since joining the club from Slavia Prague last summer for £19 million. 

He has started 15 Premier League matches so far this season, with three assists to his name. 

Wan-Bissaka has also been a key player since arriving at the London Stadium in 2024 for £15m. He has played 12 times in the English top-flight, contributing an assist in the process. 

Kyle Walker-Peters can ably fill in for one of them, but they may look to sign another full-back in the winter transfer window. 

The group stage of AFCON lasts until December 31st, meaning the West Ham duo will miss at least the matches against Manchester City, Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion. 

But if their national teams Senegal and/or Congo progress further, then they could also be unavailable against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland. 

Stats from Transfermarkt