The Leyton Orient forward, who played for Zimbabwe in 2017, will be part of the Warriors squad if he receives his passport in time

Leyton Orient forward Macauley Bonne remains on course to face Liverpool superstar Mo Salah in the Africa Cup of Nations this summer.

The O's striker, who played for Zimbabwe's under-23s in 2014, made his international debut during a friendly two seasons ago.

He played in a 1-0 defeat to Lesotho in November 2017 and has remained committed to the Warriors ever since.

Bonne has enjoyed huge success at Orient, scoring 25 goals last season and 24 during a successful 2018/19 campaign where O's won the National League title.

Now he could conclude a fine 12 month period with an appearance in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, but one small detail is still to be resolved.

Two weeks ago, on May 14, Bonne tweeted: "I have completed all necessary documents to get my Zimbabwe passport."

He added: "I will be travelling to 2019 Africa Cup of Nations this summer, representing my country."

Although Bonne submitted his papers to receive a Zimbabwean passport in London at the Zimbabwean Embassy, he is still waiting for it to come through and with the tournament starting on June 21, time is running out.

However, his national team remain confident they will be able to include the forward in their squad before the Confederation of African Football (CAF) registration deadline.

Zimbabwe have also asked the Government, through the Ministry of Sport, for special dispensation to ensure Bonne gets the papers which will allow him to compete in Egypt.

If the 23-year-old is able to play, he could face Liverpool's Salah in the first game of the tournament in Cairo.

Egypt will be against Zimbabwe in the Africa Cup of Nations opener with the countries in Group A alongside DR Congo and Uganda.

While some O's fans would prefer Bonne to rest this summer, he will relish the chance to impress on the world stage.