Equatorial Guinea players banned for offensive language at AFCON

The pair were suspended for verbally abusing referee Messie Nkounou of Congo after their 1-0 defeat to Sudan in their Group E encounter on Sunday.

Burkina Faso captain Bertrand Traore has, meanwhile, also been fined over comments made after a group match.

The Equatorial Guinea Football Federation confirmed the news on Wednesday, explaining that two of the four-match bans have been suspended for one year.

The suspensions took effect from Wednesday, ruling both players out of Equatorial Guinea's final group match against Algeria that ended in a 3-1 defeat.

They ended their tournament bottom of Group E with three losses, first going down 2-1 to Burkina Faso, ahead of losing to Sudan and Algeria.

Traore has openly criticised the officiating at the AFCON, slamming the referee after he felt Burkina Faso were denied a clear penalty in their 1-0 loss to Algeria.

He said on in a post-match interview: "It's a shame we lost to a penalty. I believe there was a penalty on me in the opening minutes.

"It's a shame, we lost 1-0 to a penalty. I think there was a penalty on me in the very first action of the match.

"The referees are ruining the game. And then, at the end, the referee (swear word) me."

Traore has reportedly however, expressed regret over his remarks, after being handed a $10,000 fine.