Rangers midfielder Mohamed Diomande did not receive a call-up to the 2025 Ivory Coast AFCON squad.
Ivory Coast head coach Emerse Faé announced his squad for the competition earlier this week. Those selected include Manchester United star Amad Diallo and former Barcelona midfielder Franck Kessié.
Faé did not choose Diomande after a disappointing run of form in Glasgow this season. He was one of two African players at the Scottish side who were expecting to head to Morocco this December.
Why was he not selected?
Since debuting for Ivory Coast in June 2024, Diomande has never completed a full 90 minutes. He is yet to contribute to a goal, even when played further forward or on the wing.
Due to his poor form in the league and for his country, Faé has not called up Diomande since June. He therefore missed the Elephants’ final four World Cup qualifiers, in which they qualified for the 2026 competition.
Though he has only missed four of Rangers’ 25 games this season, Diomande has unfortunately not performed to a level worthy of a call-up. He holds an average rating of 6.29 in all competitions this year.
Though Rangers struggled as a whole under Russell Martin, Diomande was one of the less impressive performers. Certain fans online were seemingly excited to see Diomande leave for the winter. They hoped to see a different player fill his space for a few weeks.
Regardless, Diomande would have had to be at the absolute top of his game to receive a call up. Nottingham Forest’s Ibrahim Sangaré, Seko Fofana, Kessié, and even Jean-Phillipe Gbamin secured selections. It is unlikely he would have received many minutes anyway, even if the national team had summoned him.
Who is Mohamed Diomande?
Diomande made his professional debut for Danish side FC Nordsjælland in February 2020. At the time, the midfielder received significant praise for his work rate. Fans also praised his ability to dribble through the middle of the park. He scored his first goal for the club seven months after his debut. Diomande would go on to make 111 appearances for the club before signing for Rangers.
The Glaswegian side paid £4.3m for the Ivorian in January 2024. Despite playing nearly 100 games for the club since, Diomande has failed to truly cement himself as a Scottish Premiership standard player. He debuted in February 2024 as a late substitute for Todd Cantwell. He scored his first goal for the club less than two weeks later.
The highlight of his time in Scotland was a goal in the 2024 Scottish League Cup final against Celtic. Rangers lost 5-4 on penalties to fierce rivals Celtic, despite him scoring the second of the match.
While his Rangers teammate Nasser Djiga has been called up for AFCON by Burkina Faso, Diomande will not have an opportunity to represent his country. However, Diomande staying in Scotland will give Danny Röhl's side some much-needed squad depth ahead of the busy winter period.
