The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations has begun and Celtic have two representatives at the tournament.
Sebastian Tounekti and Michel-Ange Balikwisha are competing for their nations in Morocco as they bid to become the champions of Africa.
Tounekti (Tunisia) and Balikwisha (DR Congo) were both part of the squads for their opening games of the tournament. But how did they fare?
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Sebastian Tounekti introduced as a late substitute in Tunisia win
Tunisia are one of the outside favourites to win AFCON this year, behind the likes of Morocco, Egypt and Nigeria.
They kicked off their campaign with a 3-1 victory against Uganda, where they were rarely troubled.
Celtic winger Tounekti started on the bench before the 23-year-old was introduced in the 88th minute, when his side were leading 3-0.
A consolation goal didn’t threaten to spoil the afternoon for Tunisia, but the winger will be hoping to make more of an impact in the rest of the competition.
Michel-Ange Balikwisha made to wait for first AFCON appearance
Similarly to his time at Celtic, Balikwisha was made to settle for a place on the bench in DR Congo’s narrow 1-0 win against Benin.
Balikwisha has been subjected to plenty of criticism by pundits since joining the Hoops, and will be hoping his time with his national team can inspire an upturn in form.
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Although he was an unused substitute on this occasion, there will still be more chances to get on the pitch and make an impact.
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