Nicola Pepe reveals why he was not selected for the Ivory Coast Elephants for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations

The Ivory Coast international revealed that his name was on Emerse Faé's list before being removed at the last minute.

His absence surprised the Ivorian public and fuelled debate. But it all started earlier, before the official release of the list of players selected for the Africa Cup of Nations, which took place in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026. Nicolas Pepe explains that the coach of the Ivory Coast national team tried to contact him just before his press conference. However, the player deliberately avoided the discussion.

"When I called the president, the list came out two days later. The coach had told me to call the president so that he wouldn't remove me or anything.

The coach called me before his press conference. I didn't answer. He called me twice, I didn't answer.

I wanted him to understand that there was no point in calling me at that moment, because it was a heated situation: the list had just been released. So, whatever he was going to say to me, it wasn't going to work. It wasn't the right time to talk.

At the time, he understood that too, because he had already told me that we would see each other for the Africa Cup of Nations. So he understood my reaction, didn't insist, and I think we spoke again two days later.

He explained the ins and outs of the situation to me. Basically, he made it clear that it wasn't his fault, that it was beyond his control and that, just a few minutes before the list was announced, I was still on it.

I said, ‘Okay, what's done is done.’

After that, I spoke with the President and stayed in touch with the coach for a while before they entered the competition."