AFCON (Q): Eritrea targets qualification with foreign-based reinforcements

Eritrea’s national side has included 14 players from abroad for their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) preliminary round qualifying matches against Eswatini, the Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF) president, Paulos Weldehaimanot, confirmed. The Red Sea Camels have already departed Asmara for Morocco, as they will be hosting their home game in Meknes, Morocco.

🇪🇷 Eritrea National Team has arrived in Meknes, Morocco for the #AFCON2027 qualifiers!

After landing in Casablanca, the squad traveled 245 km to their base and completed their first training session.

📅 March 25
🆚 Eswatini
🏟 Stade d’Honneur
Let’s go, Red Sea Boys! pic.twitter.com/VZMhgh2t4s

— Michael Teclai 🇪🇷 (@michael_teclai) March 21, 2026

Eritrea named former Egypt and Zamalek player Hesham Yakan at the beginning of March, as they are set to play their first AFCON qualifier in more than two decades. Local coaches had been preparing the national side before Yakan joined as head trainer.

Egypt-based Ali Sulieman headlines the squad. The pacy, left-footed striker is now on the books of Egyptian Nile League side Kahraba Ismailia, as he grabbed seven goals and two assists in his debut season. Sheffield United forward Siem Eyob Abraha is also said to have been called up for the first time by the national side for the Eswatini game. Eyob is a former Manchester United youth player.

Weldehaimanot stated that the national side will use Sulieman and Eyob as forwards and plans to secure qualification to the AFCON qualifier group stages. “We plan to use Ali Sulieman and Siem Eyob as strikers. Siem was a former Manchester United youth player. We will use what we have at our disposal. We have a mix of local and abroad players. We also have players who played against Niger in a friendly game, and we want to secure qualification to the next stage.”

From the Eritrean Super Division, 12 players are included, with reigning champions Denden and current league leaders Red Sea FC dominating the squad selection. Defender Wedeb Fessehaye is the only player from the local league who is playing for Al Tahrir FC. Red Sea FC’s inspirational midfielder Ablelom Teklezghi and Denden’s Nahom Tadesse have also been summoned for the Eswatini clash.

Norway-based striker Awet Alemseged and Simon Abrahaley of ONS Sneek of the Netherlands are among the players plying their trade in Europe.

Eritrea prepares return to the international stage with AFCON qualifying

Since gaining independence in 1993, the nation from the Horn of Africa has never qualified for a major tournament. Weldehaimanot vowed to embark on the creation of a strong national side that competes in the qualifiers from now on.

The national team has often failed to participate in qualifiers due to players frequently going missing while on international duty, with over 50 players disappearing in the last decade to seek asylum, often citing the need to flee indefinite service in the nation’s armed forces as well as harsh political conditions.