Cameroon’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign came to an end on Friday night after a 2-0 quarter-final defeat to host nation Morocco, a result that paves the way for Bryan Mbeumo’s return to Manchester United ahead of the Manchester derby.

United are in FA Cup action this weekend at Old Trafford against Brighton, but attention will soon turn to their next Premier League fixture — a high-stakes clash with Manchester City on January 17.

The Red Devils will be seeking revenge after suffering a 3-0 defeat in the reverse fixture earlier this season, where Erling Haaland struck twice at the Etihad Stadium.

Hopes of a stronger showing in the derby have been boosted by Cameroon’s elimination from AFCON 2025. Mbeumo, who started for the Indomitable Lions in Rabat, was unable to prevent their exit as Brahim Díaz opened the scoring with his fifth goal of the tournament before Ismael Saibari sealed the win late on.

The forward leaves the competition without registering a goal and is now set to return to Manchester. However, he is not expected to feature in United’s FA Cup tie against Brighton after his international commitments.

United’s interim manager Darren Fletcher confirmed that Mbeumo will not be rushed back into action.

“I don’t think so. It’s too close a turnaround,” Fletcher said. “We’ll have the same players available as we did against Burnley, so no new additions. Bryan and Nous will not be available for the game.”

While Mbeumo heads home, Noussair Mazraoui remains on AFCON duty with Morocco and is now guaranteed to miss the Manchester derby. The Atlas Lions have progressed to the final week of the tournament and will contest either the third-place playoff on January 17 or the final a day later.

Meanwhile, Manchester United’s other representative at AFCON, Amad Diallo, will be hoping to join Mazraoui in the semi-finals as Ivory Coast prepare to face seven-time champions Egypt.