Utrecht striker Sébastien Haller, who recovered from cancer treatment to score the winner in last year's Africa Cup of Nations final, has been ruled out of this year's tournament due to injury, the Ivory Coast FA confirmed on Friday.
Haller injured his hamstring in an Eredivisie match for his club side Utrecht on Sunday, before undergoing medical assessment this week in order to establish whether he would be fit in time for the tournament, which kicks off on Sunday.
The 31-year-old has been replaced in the Elephants' squad by Aston Villa forward Evan Guessand, who had been one of several high-profile omissions from the team by head coach Emerse Fae.
"Haller is out of the AFCON following an injury contracted on December 14 with Utrecht," read a statement issued by the Ivorian Federation on Friday. "The FIF wish a swift recovery to our African champion, and send him all of our support."
He was introduced as a 68th-minute substitute for Utrecht away at NAC Breda on Sunday, but was replaced in some discomfort 13 minutes later having sustained an injury to his hamstring.
The former West Ham United forward has been receiving treatment at the Elephants' Marbella training camp this week, with the federation giving themselves as long as possible before deciding whether he would be able to participate.
His replacement, Guessand, featured five times during last year's qualification campaign, without scoring a goal, but has featured nine times for the national side this year and was something of a surprise omission from the Elephants' original squad.
He's failed to make his mark at Aston Villa since signing from OGC Nice in August for an undisclosed fee, and is yet to find the net in 11 Premier League appearances.
Haller endured an injury-hit campaign at the last Nations Cup, only recovering from an ankle complaint to make his first start at the tournament in the semifinal. Against the Democratic Republic of Congo, his fortunate winner sent the hosts through to the final, keeping alive hopes of a third continental crown.
Against Nigeria at the Stade Alassane Ouattara outside Abidjan, Haller flicked home a winner in the 81st minute after Frank Kessie's second-half header cancelled out William Troost-Ekong's opener for the Super Eagles.
Haller was diagnosed with testicular cancer in July 2022, only two weeks after signing for Borussia Dortmund, and required two surgeries and various rounds of chemotherapy before returning to full training in January 2023. He finally made his debut for BVB that same month - scoring against Freiburg.
The Ivory Coast begin their Group F campaign against Mozambique in Marrakesh on Christmas Eve before they face Cameroon at the same venue four days later. Their first round fixtures conclude with a New Year's Eve meeting with Gabon as the defending champions look to progress to the knockouts for the fourth consecutive edition of the biennial showpiece.