Michael Essien, the former Chelsea midfielder was the subject of internet rumours of coming down with the Ebola virus after he missed the Ghana vs Guinea match. Today, he denied he had the deadly disease rampaging through West Africa where the death toll has topped 4000 and shows no signs of abating.

Ebola now threatens the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations as hosts Morocco have asked for a deferral. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced there will be no change in the tournament dates due to begin 17 January. The organization insisted they are following all the WHO safeguards and have banned Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guninea from hosting home games. CAF’s executive committee are due to meet November 2nd to discuss Morocco’s request. Seychelles forfeited their ACN qualifying home match against Sierra Leone due to fears over the Ebola virus. Both Sierra Leone and Guinea are in the midst of the group stage qualifiers playing their “home matches” in DR Congo and Morocco respectively.

As Sierre Leone’s Football Association’s VP Brima Mazola Kamara in an interview explained, the FA had to shop around to find a country that would be willing to host their home games after Nigeria, Ghana, and Morocco turned them down. Ivory Coast and Cameroun in their qualifying group only agreed to play them after receiving reassurances that the side would field only overseas players. The onus fell on the FA to have these countries agree to play, a failure would invite sanctions. A concern Seychelles was apparently willing to take by forfeiting their ACN qualifying home match against Sierra Leone due to fears over the Ebola virus. The demoralization of playing their home matches away to their DR Congo rivals compounded by those fans chanting Ebola Ebola when the Sierra Leone side took to the pitch.

So far the bulk of the epidemic has been confined to these three West African countries but Nigeria and Senegal have also seen smaller scale outbreaks which fortunately have been contained. The USA and Spain are the first two countries outside of that locus which have reported three victims, one a Liberian national who died last week in Dallas. The next few months will be critical in containing the spread which in turn will be determined by the safety guidelines established by individual countries. If cases of across border transmissions mount and spread to other countries then it might be difficult to justify holding the ACN. The virus can be transmitted through exposure to bodily fluids, food and drink, and semen which can remain infectious for about three months after onset. Imposing travel restrictions and quarantines would dampen the inclusive spirit of the ACN, usually a vibrant and colourful competition, and fielding only overseas players would put a strain on the European leagues who have never looked upon the ACN poaching their players at a crucial time.