The striker from England’s eighth tier hoping to face Salah at Afcon

Like someone hoping to receive a Christmas gift they have really, really wanted for ages, footballer Macauley Bonne is trying to keep his level of excitement in check.

There is a huge gulf between playing for Essex club Maldon & Tiptree in the eighth tier of English football and representing Zimbabwe at the Africa Cup of Nations.

But following a journey of more than 2,000 miles to host nation Morocco, that is what the 30-year-old is about to do – and he could find himself on the same pitch as Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush of Manchester City in the first major international tournament of his career.

It is 11 years since the former Leyton Orient and Ipswich Town player made a goalscoring debut for Zimbabwe, the country where his parents were born, and he has only played four more times since then.

“I was quite emotional (when I made the squad) because of the way things have gone for me in football over the past few years,” Bonne told BBC Essex.

“Missing out on getting called up to camps over the last few months, and then a new manager comes in and wants to completely change the dynamic of it all, he actually knew of me already – I was overwhelmed, there were a few tears shed. I’m so happy, I can’t explain it.”

Zimbabwe missed out on the last Afcon, along with Kenya, after they were both hit with a two-year ban imposed by Fifa in 2022 for governmental interference in the running of the game in the two countries.

The ban was lifted the following year but The Warriors had missed out on qualifying and it was hosts Ivory Coast who lifted the trophy in February 2024 after beating Nigeria 2-1 in the final.

Zimbabwe reached Afcon 2025, though, by finishing second to Cameroon in qualifying and have been drawn in the same group as seven-time winners Egypt, South Africa and Angola.

The opening game against Egypt on Monday evening at the Adrar Stadium in Agadir is sure to be a tough start but may see Bonne rubbing shoulders with Salah and Marmoush or even – if he gets really lucky – swapping shirts with one of them.

“You know what, it’s very exciting, everyone says to me ‘are you playing Salah?’, ‘are you playing Marmoush?’. At the end of the day I’m going over there to win a game and they’ll be on the same pitch as me,” said Bonne.

“I’m going there to represent my country and I’ve got to do the most I can and not let these distractions have an effect on me.”

He continued: “I’m going to be away from the family at Christmastime, away from my wife and kids, and my dogs, so I can’t take it as a jolly-up, I’ve got to go there, be as serious as possible and make the most out of it.”

Zimbabwe have a new head coach in charge, with Romanian Mario Marinica having been appointed in November to replace Michael Nees, having previously been in charge of Malawi and Liberia.

He has a number of England-based players in his squad, including Wolves midfielder Tawanda Chirewa, Sheffield Wednesday’s Sean Fusire, Andy Rinomhota of Reading and Plymouth Argyle defender Brendan Galloway.

For Bonne, though, it is a big step up from his most recent domestic appearance as a substitute in Maldon & Tiptree’s 1-0 Isthmian League North Division win at Redbridge on 29 November in front of a crowd of 152 people.

“Someone needs to get the movie rights to this because it will sell millions at the box office, I’m telling you,” he said.

“It’s the story of my whole career, really, getting setbacks to overcome them. Now I’m playing step four (of non-league), I’m enjoying it, the club, the owners, the players, everyone’s just absolutely top notch.

“They’re all really happy for me. Playing step four and going to a an international tournament, I don’t think it’s ever been done, has it?”

He does have experience of far higher levels to draw on, having played for both Charlton and Queens Park Rangers in the Championship during his career.

Bonne does not expect to be in the starting line-up straight away but hopes he can give Marinica some food for thought when it comes to team selection.

He added: “Every striker wants to score goals, but my aim is to play, just get some minutes, and anything above that is a bonus. If I do that, the next one will be ‘try and put the ball in the back of the net’.”

Bonne spent last season with Southend United and played in the National League play-off final at Wembley, but his hopes of staying at Roots Hall came to nothing and he eventually accepted a drop of three levels to join his current club.

He has missed out on previous tournaments with Zimbabwe for various reasons, including passport issues and Covid travel restrictions, and he did not make an appearance for them between 2017 and 2024.

“My aim was to get to play a major tournament in my career and now I’ve potentially got the chance to do that,” he said.

“I’ve missed out on a few Afcons because of my passport issues and obviously last year I missed out on World Cup qualifying because the manager didn’t fancy me – there’s been a lot of setbacks.

“I’ve got seven years of, not anger, seven years of hunger to get to this moment, to do it, and when I get a chance, the majority of the time I take it and this is one I’m absolutely going to grab with both hands.

“I’ve waited a long time for this, for me and my family, and it’s now or never. I’ve got to make the most of it.”