The African Cup of Nations (AFCON) has been marred by controversies, including a pay dispute between the Gambian federation and its players after qualifying for the tournament, as reported by Simon_Hughes__. Additionally, there was a reported incident involving a potential disaster on a plane carrying the team to Ivory Coast. The opening game for Gambia ended in a loss, with Senegal defeating them 3-0. The tournament has faced criticism for its scheduling conflict with European leagues, leading to pressure on players to prioritize club commitments over national duties, as noted by jaydmharris. In another AFCON development, Ivory Coast played without one of their key players, Wilfried Zaha, after he was left out of the squad, a story detailed by TBurrows16. England captain Leah Williamson, in interviews with WomensSport and TomJGarry, and as reported by The42_ie and PAdugout, has spoken out about the 'unsustainable' football schedule, following her own serious injury, an anterior cruciate ligament rupture, which caused her to miss the World Cup.
England captain Leah Williamson feels women players are “driving ourselves into the ground” with a hectic schedule which could lead to more serious injuries unless an unsustainable workload is managed properly https://t.co/94oQxQTpoc
England captain says women’s football schedule ‘unsustainable’ Leah Williamson was also forced to miss last summer’s World Cup after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament. https://t.co/bFLAzTgBbF
Big game at #Afcon today - Ivory Coast vs Nigeria The hosts will go into the match without Wilfried Zaha, one of their biggest names, after he was left out the squad A piece on Zaha, Ivory Coast, their complicated relationship + why he’s not there https://t.co/oXDLSK2iP1 ⬇️
As soon as she had caught her knee innocuously and hit the turf, Williamson realised it was serious... ✍️ @TomJGarry #TelegraphWomensSport | @leahcwilliamson | @ArsenalWFC
Excl. interview: @leahcwilliamson speaks openly to @WomensSport about her rehab journey, why she didn't want pity after doing her ACL and how she kept perspective, plus she issues a stark warning to football over fatigue and this "unsustainable" calendar. https://t.co/0Nql2KkasL
The calendar conflict has been brewing for years. It has picked up steam as women's clubs/leagues have professionalized and national teams no longer dominate players' lives—and FIFA increases programming. #NWSL background: https://t.co/mWI0f44V4S Europe: https://t.co/C6yT9JqPoa https://t.co/DG9bu7DnF4
Norway + Lyon star Ada Hegerberg weighs in on the ongoing issues with the international match calendar, for @guardian_sport: "The risk to player health is increasing exponentially." 🔗https://t.co/XHebwlbcBP https://t.co/fqE2JQ32j1
Domestic women's football is on the rise in England 📈 But is enough being done to protect the mental health of players? #BBCFootball https://t.co/zf9Naa5oZ1
🌍The first few days of AFCON have been packed with drama 🏆But it is a tournament which is often disrespected as it clashes with European leagues 🫤This is the story of players who were pressured to prioritise club over country 📝 @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/BmCeyjtisv
The Gambian federation tried to undercut the Gambian players in a pay dispute after qualifying for AFCON. Then there might have been a disaster on the plane taking them to Ivory Coast. Opening game: Gambia 0, Senegal 3. Inside the dispute. Inside the plane https://t.co/3g24TyVQwa