The dream of Ghanaian referee Joseph Lamptey to officiate at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations finals has been truncated as he has been snubbed by the Confederation of Africa Football.

Lamptey is currently serving a three-month ban from the Referees Commission of CAF following a mistake he made in awarding South Africa a dubious penalty during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier last month.

The Immigration Officer warded the penalty, which was later described as a 'manufactured' penalty by the hosts, when the ball hit a Senegalese defender on the thigh.

Lamptey who has been Ghana's top referee on the international scene will therefore miss next January's tournament after 17 referees were listed.

Though Lamptey has suffered a ban by CAF before, this will be a bigger blow as he was looking to use the 2017 Nations Cup in Gabon as a platform to reach the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals.