Top 15 African Players in the Champions League in the Past 10 Years
During the first round of Champions League group-stage matches, two African players particularly stood out.
As discussed in the African Football Weekly podcast, Gervinho and Yacine Brahimi both excelled for AS Roma and FC Porto respectively.
The former scored twice and contributed an assist against CSKA Moscow, while the latter bagged a hat-trick against a beleaguered BATE Borisov.
Both men will hope that, over this season, they can cement themselves among the finest African performers in the tournament’s history.
In this feature, we profile the best 15 Africans in the Champions League over the past 10 years. Those players listed here have been ranked based on their consistency, longevity, impact and performances in the business end of the competition.
Those Who Missed out
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There have been a large number of African players to have featured in the Champions League in the last 10 years, and naturally not everyone could make the top 15.
Here are some of the notable names who missed out:
McDonald Mariga
The midfielder was an unused substitute in the 2010 Champions League final and, following Inter's two goals against Bayern Munich, became the first Kenyan to win Europe's premier club competition.
Mariga did feature in the competition that year, against Chelsea, but he couldn't assert himself at the club over the subsequent years.
He was released this summer and secured a permanent contract with Parma.
To date, he has only made five appearances in the Champions League.
Emmanuel Adebayor
Adebayor has averaged a goal every four games in the Champions League, a sign perhaps that he doesn't quite measure up to the truly elite strikers of European football.
He was unfortunate, perhaps, in that he arrived at Arsenal just after a fine team had begun to disintegrate and left both Manchester City and Real Madrid before both of those sides managed to refine their approach.
He scored against current club Tottenham Hotspur in the quarter-final of 2010 but was impotent as Real were dumped out by rivals Barcelona in the semi-final.
Mahamadou Diarra
Consistency and tenacity in the latter stages for Real Madrid and Olympique Lyonnais, but neither of those clubs quite managed to achieve their Champions League ambitions with the determined Diarra in the heart of the park.
Shabani Nonda
Congolese forward Shabani Nonda was a powerful, effective frontman, but injury and inconsistency prevented him from truly realising his potential.
Over the last 10 years, only three African players have featured in the Champions League final without having won the title proper. Two of the other players appear in this article later on, but Nonda, who was a defeated finalist with Monaco in 2004, doesn't quite make the cut.
Freddie Kanoute
Freddie Kanoute's greatest contributions in Europe came in the UEFA Cup. He won the tournament with Sevilla in 2006 and then retained it with the Spanish side a year later.
Those two victories came either side of a UEFA Super Cup win, but that talented team largely failed to translate their excellent form in Europe's B competition to the top table. They were ousted by Fenerbahce in the last 16 in 2008.
Kanoute was a quality operator, however, and managed six goals in 15 Champions League matches during his career.
15. Djimi Traore
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Admittedly, Djimi Traore never quite managed the same level of performance as the other players on the list.
Sorry, Djimi, but it's true!
The Malian full-back was something of a joke figure at Liverpool during his time at Anfield, not least because of his unforgettable own goal against Burnley in the FA Cup.
Needless to say, the former Portsmouth man never tried that particular skill again.
He did, however, enjoy his moment in the sun and achieved something that the likes of Pele, Ronaldo and Diego Maradona never did—lift the European Cup.
The defender played the full 120 minutes against Milan in the 2005 final, as Liverpool enjoyed a magnificent comeback before winning on penalties.
It's probably for the best that Traore didn't step up to take one during the shootout.
14. Seydou Doumbia
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CSKA Moscow's Ivorian forward Seydou Doumbia has much less Champions League experience than the rest of the players featured on this list; however, his numbers cannot be ignored.
Since joining the Russian side in 2010, Doumbia has a terrific scoring record in Europe. In 16 appearances, he has bagged 14 goals.
A total of 10 of these showings have come in the Champions League, where Doumbia has seven goals already.
One of those goals came in 2011, when CSKA recorded one of their greatest-ever European results, beating Internazionale 2-1 at the San Siro.
Those impressive ratios will drop this season, as the capital club are drawn in a taxing group alongside AS Roma, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. With the deadly Doumbia leading the line, however, could the Russians cause a surprise or two?
13. Obafemi Martins
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To date, Obafemi Martins has featured 33 times in the Champions League, scoring nine goals.
Unfortunately, those matches largely came when the striker was a young, raw talent. The years when he should have been in his prime have been spent in some of Europe's backwaters or, more recently, in Major League Soccer where he has starred for Seattle Sounders.
It's fair to say that he hasn't lived up to those great early expectations at Internazionale.
There aren't too many players who can claim to have scored in a Champions League semi-final, but Martins has.
Not only did he find the net on such a grand stage, but he did so against Inter's bitter local rivals Milan.
The arrivals of Hernan Crespo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic ultimately pushed Martins out of the team, and while he would later return to the Champions League with Wolfsburg, he would never quite reach the heights of those early glorious, explosive outings with the Nerazzurri.
12. Emmanuel Eboue
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I don't always feel that Emmanuel Eboue gets the respect he deserves for his contribution to Arsenal, the Ivory Coast and, latterly, Galatasaray.
While he may have fallen from grace with the national side, and his career in north London may have ended in ignominy, he enjoyed some great moments under Arsene Wenger.
He played 11 times during the 2005-06 season as Arsenal made the final—the first-ever for a London club—and deserves great credit for contributing to the Gunners' defensive resilience, following Jens Lehmann's 18th-minute red card.
For three consecutive seasons (between 2007 and 2010), he made double-figure outings for the Londoners in Europe's premier competition, helping the Gunners to the quarter-finals twice and the semi-finals once during this period.
11. Noureddine Naybet
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Moroccan Noureddine Naybet will forever be remembered as one of Africa's greatest defenders of all time. The centre-back was an elegant and composed presence for Deportivo La Coruna for eight years.
The highlight of that period was surely his role in the club's La Liga triumph of 2000, their first (and to date, only) Spanish title.
However, four years later, during his final year at the club, Naybet played his part in a match described below by The Guardian's Michael O'Connor:
"Deportivo La Coruna last night performed one of the greatest feats in modern European football when they destroyed AC Milan, the defending champions and tournament favourites, with a four-goal surge that defied mountainous odds.
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The focus, as Depor overcame a 4-1 first-leg deficit to progress against the reigning champions, was naturally on the team's strikeforce. However, Naybet and his fellow defenders deserve great credit for keeping out Milan's magnificent array of attacking talent.
The Spaniards would fall to Mourinho's Porto in the semi-final.
In total, Naybet featured 44 times in the Champions League.
10. Kolo Toure
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Centre-back Kolo Toure is one of only three African players to have played in a Champions League final in the last 10 years but has never won the major honour.
The defender was present in 2006 as Arsenal came so close to beating Barcelona to become the first-ever London club to conquer the continent. Instead, that honour fell to Chelsea some six years later.
Toure is no stranger to domestic success. He has won the Premier League twice, with Arsenal and Manchester City, and came close with Liverpool last season.
Despite having been a member of the Ivory Coast's Golden Generation, Toure will surely be remembered for being one of Arsenal's Invincibles.
At £150,000, the defender must be one of Arsene Wenger's finest-ever signings and featured 65 times for the Gunners in the Champions League.
Will he add to this tally with Liverpool this season?
9. Benni McCarthy
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Benni McCarthy's key contribution to the history of the Champions League came in the summer of 2004, just qualifying him to sneak into this list.
The striker was part of Jose Mourinho's celebrated FC Porto side and was present in the 2004 final as the Portuguese giants beat AS Monaco to lift their second European crown.
In lifting the trophy that year, he became the only South African player to have won the Champions League.
Having earlier tasted the limelight at Ajax, he would move on to Blackburn Rovers, transferring his exceptional penalty-box abilities to the Premier League.
Sadly, his career ended in flabby ignominy at West Ham United, while he infamously missed out on the 2010 World Cup on home soil.
He may never have won the African title, but he played in two World Cups and remains Bafana Bafana's all-time top scorer.
8. Salomon Kalou
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For six years Salomon Kalou offered Chelsea an attacking option from the bench. He may not have been one of the side's stars, but he was a versatile operator who often contributed important goals at important moments in important matches.
He never cemented his place as a regular first-teamer, however, and when Eden Hazard was signed in the summer of 2012, Kalou moved in the opposite direction, departing for Lille.
The Ivorian picked up the Premier League title in 2010 and, in his final season with the Pensioners, won his fourth FA Cup as well as the Champions League.
During the run to the final, he demonstrated his aptitude for the big occasion, scoring a crucial away goal in the 1-0 win over Benfica in the quarter-final.
He started the final against Bayern Munich, being replaced by Fernando Torres on 84 minutes.
7. Sulley Muntari
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In 2010, Sulley Muntari became the third Ghanaian player to win the European Cup following Internazionale's 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich in Madrid.
The West African played 11 minutes in the final, replacing Goran Pandev to close off the game in the latter stages.
Muntari was an important component of Jose Mourinho's fine Inter side that season. He was a regular in Serie A, clocking up 27 appearances, and also featured nine times in the Champions League.
The experienced, versatile operator will be hoping that he can return to Europe's top table with Internazionale's cross-city rivals Milan next season having missed out this term.
6. John Obi Mikel
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John Obi Mikel hasn't always been taken seriously at Chelsea, but few can argue with his contributions during Chelsea's victorious 2012 Champions League campaign.
The Nigerian played a vital role in the semi-final victory over Barcelona at Stamford Bridge, moving forward to man-mark Xavi Hernandez, then stepping back to form a watertight midfield three with Frank Lampard and Raul Meireles.
Mikel brought a considerable physical presence and was selected for the final against Bayern Munich, although here his performance was less composed but full of endeavour.
The West African has also picked up a Premier League title and four FA Cups at Stamford Bridge, and memorably guided Nigeria to the Cup of Nations title in 2013.
5. Yaya Toure
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While Yaya Toure is one of the most effective central midfielders the Premier League has ever seen—and only the second after Frank Lampard to break the 20-goal mark—he actually won the Champions League as a central defender with Barcelona.
With Dani Alves suspended, Carles Puyol moved to right-back, with the Ivorian stopper slipping into the back line alongside Gerard Pique.
Barcelona arguably perfected their approach only after Toure's departure, but in 2009 they were still a magnificent force, and while Manchester United made mistakes in their approach, the Catalonians were convincing winners.
He played 30 times for Barcelona in the Champions League and has since featured in the tournament for Manchester City.
Can the midfielder turn around his recent sluggish form and drag City into new territory in Europe's premier club competition?
4. Michael Essien
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There must have been moments, following Chelsea's Champions League defeat in 2008, that Michael Essien imagined his opportunity to win the European Cup would be gone for good.
He played at right-back on that occasion but would only feature in 14 league games the next season as injury began to wrap its insidious claws around the midfielder's career.
The next season the Ghanaian scored a wonder goal in the semi-final against Barcelona, but the away goals rule sent the Blues packing following a particularly dramatic and tempestuous showing.
In 2012, Essien and Chelsea made amends for the defeat of 2009.
The midfielder was an unused substitute in the final but still received the winner's medal that his service richly deserved.
3. Seydou Keita
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Seydou Keita wasn't the most high-profile member of Pep Guardiola’s stunning Barcelona generation, but he was arguably one of the most important.
The manager himself was a huge fan, describing the Malian as "the most generous footballer I've ever known."
Indeed, Keita was a terrific squad player and was rewarded for his selflessness. He picked up three La Liga titles, two Copas del Rey and three Spanish Super Cups in Catalonia.
Unsurprisingly, the West African featured in both of Barca's triumphant Champions League finals of 2009 and 2011, being brought on late on to see out the contest.
Can his experience see AS Roma out of an exceptionally taxing group this season?
2. Didier Drogba
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There aren't too many players who can claim to have single-handedly won the Champions League.
There are few doubts, however, that were it not for Didier Drogba, Chelsea wouldn't have become the first London club to lift the European Cup in 2012.
Drogba's impact in the final against Bayern Munich was emphatic.
He equalised in the 88th minute—his perfectly placed header cancelling out Thomas Muller's opener—before hammering home the decisive penalty in the shootout.
The Ivorian had previously scored in the round-of-16 clash with Napoli, as well as bagging the winner against Barcelona in the semi-final first leg at Stamford Bridge.
At times he looked as though he was on a one-man mission to bring the title to west London.
No Chelsea player has ever scored more in the Champions League than Drogba, who has 34, and indeed, the forward holds the record for the continent—no African player can rival Drogba's 42.
1. Samuel Eto'o
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Didier Drogba might have scored more goals in the Champions League than any other African player, but he still cannot compete with Eto'o's performances in the competition.
By the time the Ivorian won his first European Cup, in 2012, Eto'o already had three continental titles.
He won the Champions League twice with Barcelona, in 2006 and 2009, and also with Internazionale in 2010.
Despite moving to Italy after his second title, Eto'o still managed to wrap up a second consecutive treble.
He wasn't just a passenger either, as some of the players on this list could have been accused of being. In 2006 he was the Official Man of the Match in the final victory over Arsenal, and scored both in this match and the 2009 triumph over Manchester United.
In both matches, it was an Eto'o goal that broke the deadlock and turned the tie in Barca's favour.
For Internazionale, he didn't score in the final but demonstrated his excellent teamwork abilities and discipline by taking a right-sided role in Jose Mourinho's fine side, allowing Diego Milito to lead the line.
Last season, in what may well prove to be Eto'o's last in the competition, he still managed to score three goals in five Champions League starts, including a crucial goal in the second leg against Galatasaray and a brace against Schalke.
