Olise, Adeyemi, and Other Players of African Descent Left Out of Euro 2024 Squads

• Euro 2024 kicks off today with host nation, Germany, and Scotland battling it out in the opening game at the Allianz Arena
• The squad selection of most countries generated controversy with fans on social media due to the omission of some players
• Some top stars who are of African descent were omitted from the squads, including Crystal Palace star, Michael Olise

Africa is a major exporter of football talent, with players of African descent excelling in Europe and representing European countries at the highest level.

Controversies surround them at every major tournament when some of them are overlooked for squad selections regardless of their current form at their clubs.

Eberechi Eze was a big call-up for England after he was named in the squad ahead of regulars like Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford. Manchester United youngster, Kobbie Mainoo, also got the nod.

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Sports Brief looks at top stars of African descent who did not get called up for Euro 2024.

Players of African descent overlooked for Euro 2024

1. Karim Adeyemi

The fuelled-by-fufu star was named in the Die Mannschaft squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, Julian Nagelsmann overlooked him for the Euro squad despite an impressive season with Borussia Dortmund, where they reached the UEFA Champions League final. According to Soccernet, he is still eligible to switch allegiance to Nigeria.

2. Fikayo Tomori

Tomori pledged his international allegiance to England in 2019 during his time at Chelsea despite interest from Canada and Nigeria. He has been in and out of the team and has yet to feature in an international tournament. According to Goal, he gave a telling reaction to AC Milan fans, insulting Southgate after he was snubbed for the Euro squad.

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3. Michael Olise

The Crystal Palace star is eligible to play in four countries: France, England, Nigeria, and Algeria. He represented the French at a youth level but was not called up for Euro 2024 by Didier Deschamps. Thierry Henry instead named him in the Paris 2024 Olympics squad.

4. Trevoh Chalobah

Chalobah was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, but his family moved to England when he was two. He represented the English at the youth levels but has never earned a senior call-up. He had an impressive second half of the season for Chelsea despite missing many months due to injury.

5. Ansu Fati

Fati was once touted to be one of the next big stars in football, but two serious knee injuries have hampered his progress and quietened his hype. He had an unsuccessful loan spell at Brighton and Hove Albion and was rightfully left out of the Spain squad. He can no longer represent Guinea Bissau because he has 10 caps for La Roja.

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6. Youssoufa Moukoko

Moukoko was born in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon, but grew up in Germany. He was named in the squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and made his debut, becoming the youngest ever. He had limited time for Dortmund this season and was not selected for the Euro squad.

7. Wesley Fofana

All fairness to him; he might have had a chance if he was not injured. Fofana has been unlucky with injuries since he joined Chelsea. He has played 15 games and missed the whole of last season with an ACL injury. He has one cap for France and is still eligible to play for Ivory Coast through his father.

Top 5 players left out of France's squad

Sports Brief also previously reported on the top players missing from France's squad for the 2024 European Championship after Deschamps confirmed his full squad list.

Chelsea right-back, Malo Gusto, was one of the high-profile names missing from the list despite an impressive season for the Blues. Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise also missed out.