‘Powerful’ Man Utd man offered chance to join Amad, Mazraoui & Mbeumo in AFCON after England snub

Manchester United teenager Godwill Kukonki has reportedly been handed a golden opportunity to play in the African Cup of Nations as well as the World Cup.Despite his tender age, the 17-year-old has already trained under Ruben Amorim on several occasions. The Portuguese manager was impressed with Kukonki’s ‘powerful’ presence.Standing at 6’5′, the defender makes for a towering figure at the back, and many foresee a bright future for him at Old Trafford, as evidenced by Amorim’s esteem.(Photo by Ben Roberts Photo/Getty Images)Godwill Kukonki could become the 4th Man Utd player to head to AFCONThe Stoke-on-Trent native has been developing his skills at Carrington. He mostly represents Man Utd’s U18 side, while occasionally featuring for the U21 team.Kukonki has also made a couple of appearances for England U17, but wasn’t selected for the ongoing U17 World Cup. Nevertheless, the rising defender could soon make his senior international debut, but certainly not for the Three Lions.According to journalist Paddy Keogh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has offered the United teenager the opportunity to join their first team. Godwill Kukonki has been offered the chance to represent DR Congo at the African Cup of Nations and the 2026 World Cup. He was not included in the England under-17 squad for the U-17 World Cup. pic.twitter.com/ADpVSDZ3zq — Paddy – Attacking Football (@PaddyKeoghAF) November 19, 2025Congo will participate in the upcoming African Cup of Nations, which will take place between December and January.Man United are already set to lose the services of three players who are set to receive call-ups for AFCON. These are Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast), Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon), and Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco).Kukonki can play in the World Cup if he chooses CongoIn addition to AFCON, DR Congo will also participate in next summer’s World Cup. They stunned Cameroon and Nigeria to prevail in the African play-offs.This will be their second-ever appearance in the global tournament. Their previous participation was in 1974, back when the nation was still known as Zaire. Kukonki’s career stats Appearances Goals Assists Man Utd U18 29 2 2 Man Utd U21 9 0 1 Therefore, Kukonki has been handed a real dilemma at such a young age. Accepting Congo’s call-up would allow him to burn the stages and guarantee himself a place in the most celebrated tournament in sports.However, this would deny him the opportunity to represent England at some stage in his career and at least compete for the biggest honours in football, mainly the World Cup and the European Championship.