Burnley coach Vincent Kompany rules Lyle Foster out of AFCON

The 23-year-old striker was named in Hugo Broos' preliminary squad for the 2023 AFCON to be held in the Ivory Coast early next year.

Foster has been undergoing an evaluation by the club for a mental health issue he has been suffering during his time with the English Premier League club.

Kompany said in the Burnley Express: "Unfortunately at the moment he's not in a position where he can go to the national team, he just can't.

"It's not something he can do at the moment, going away for a long time and being in a very different environment."

Burnley have been assisting Foster in his recovery to full health.

The Clarets boss added: "His love for his country has no limits and his desire to do well has no limits, but that would be going against the advice of every expert who has been assisting him in recent months.

"I'm a coach from African origin so the AFCON is very important and I feel very proud of any player representing us there because that tournament deserves the same importance as the Euros.

"But for his condition specifically, the human being, which is the person we've treated in the past month, he's not at a stage yet where he can do any of that.

"Hopefully in the future he will be able to do much more for everybody on the big stage, but it's step by step."

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