Analysing Liverpool's Hits and Misses When Signing African Players
Sadio Mane has quickly become a favourite with Liverpool's fans.
Goals tend to make you popular at a new club, and the Senegal international—signed from Southampton last summer—has already scored 11 of them in his debut season on Merseyside.
The Reds forked out £35.02 million to get Mane, but Joel Matip cost nothing.
The Cameroonian arrived on a Bosman free from Schalke, and although unable to completely shore up a faulty back line, he's looked more reliable than the other central defenders available to manager Jurgen Klopp.
Mane and Matip are just the latest African footballers to make a positive impact for the Reds. However, not all players hailing from the continent made such a good impression at Liverpool.
Here, Bleacher Report trawls back through the club's transfer records to pick out some of the hits and misses.
Hit: Bruce Grobbelaar
1 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 628
Transfer fee paid: £250,000
Bruce Grobbelaar seemed to relish playing in goal, as if he stepped between the posts to entertain.
Considering what he went through earlier in his life, that's not surprising. Born in Durban, South Africa, Grobbelaar fought in the civil war in Rhodesia (which led to the formation of Zimbabwe).
"After this terrifying experience, my years in football were a dream," he told Jamie Jackson for the Observer Sport Monthly in 2005.
The goalkeeper was prone to the odd rush of blood. He seemed determined to have the ball for as long as possible, no matter what the risks. There wasn't a cross Grobbelaar believed couldn't be caught.
Yet he was also capable of producing miraculous saves, too. If his impetuous nature got him in a spot of bother, his reactions often saved the day.
Signed in 1981 by Bob Paisley, Grobbelaar made 628 appearances for the Reds. He was the club's unpredictable last line of defence for over a decade, during which time Liverpool won six league titles, as well as three FA and League Cups.
They were also crowned kings of Europe in 1984 as Grobbelaar, complete with his spaghetti-style legs, helped defeat Roma on penalties.
Yet despite his antics, he was still fiercely competitive. Just ask Jim Beglin or Steve McManaman, two team-mates who were on the receiving end of his wrath. You do not last long at Liverpool without a ruthless streak.
Miss: Salif Diao
2 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 61 appearances (three goals)
Transfer fee paid: £4.7 million
Gerard Houllier did an awful lot right during his spell as Liverpool manager.
He led the club to the treble (FA, League and UEFA Cup) in 2001, signed Sami Hyypia and John Arne Riise and introduced local lads Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard to the first team.
However, the Frenchman's transfer activity in the summer of 2002 won't be considered a highlight of his time in charge.
Here's a list of the five players signed prior to the 2002/03 season: Bruno Cheyrou, El Hadji Diouf, Alou Diarra, Patrice Luzi and Salif Diao.
Yikes.
In defence of Houllier, Diao and Diouf arrived at Anfield after helping Senegal reach the last eight of the FIFA World Cup. A holding midfielder, the former joined Liverpool from French club Sedan.
Yet it didn't take Gerrard long to figure out that Diao wouldn't cut the mustard at Anfield, as he revealed in his 2007 autobiography.
"With Salif, I knew after a week of training that he wasn't going to be good enough. Diao's a good player, but not Liverpool class," he wrote (h/t Pete Smith of the Stoke Sentinel).
While regularly involved in his debut season, Houllier's departure in the summer of 2004 was the beginning of the end for Diao on Merseyside.
He had loan spells at Birmingham City, Portsmouth and Stoke City before Liverpool released him in 2007.
Hit: Mohamed Sissoko
3 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 87 (one goal)
Transfer fee paid: £5.6 million
Mohamed "Momo" Sissoko endeared himself to Liverpool fans before kicking a ball.
Born in France to Malian parents, the midfielder represented Les Bleus at junior level before switching nationalities to play for the Eagles.
Sissoko appeared to be on the verge of joining Everton in 2005 only to end up on the other side of Stanley Park after Rafa Benitez's last-minute intervention.
Liverpool's Spanish manager knew all about the player, as they had previously worked together at Valencia.
Comparisons to Patrick Vieira heaped pressure on the 20-year-old's shoulders—and Benitez did little to temper expectations, per the Guardian: "Sissoko runs more than Vieira, and in a couple of years he will be more dynamic than Vieira and a better player."
He certainly hit the ground running as a Red, although a serious eye injury in February 2006 at one stage threatened to cut short his career.
Still, Sissoko concluded his debut season by playing 120 minutes in Liverpool's dramatic penalty shoot-out success over West Ham United in the FA Cup final.
A dislocated shoulder hampered his second year at Anfield, and by the time he returned to action, there was further competition in midfield following the arrival of Javier Mascherano.
Having slipped down the pecking order and seemingly unable to rediscover his best form, Liverpool sold him—at a profit—to Juventus in January 2008.
Miss: El Hadji Diouf
4 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 80 (six goals)
Transfer fee paid: £10 million
As already mentioned, Diouf was signed in a forgettable summer in 2002.
After finishing second to Manchester United the previous season, Houllier wanted a forward to add extra firepower to his squad.
He had to choose between two players: Nicolas Anelka, who'd previously spent time on loan at the English club, or Diouf, who was thriving at Lens under Houllier's former assistant, Patrice Bergues.
Houllier went for the second option—a decision he later admitted was a mistake.
"I wish I had kept Nicolas Anelka, instead of recruiting Diouf, but his [Anelka's] brothers didn’t help him," the Frenchman told Joe Rimmer of the Liverpool Echo.
The new recruit peaked early, scoring twice on debut. However, things went downhill (and fast) from there.
The goals quickly dried up—he didn't even score once during the 2003/04 season—as he became prolific at only one thing: getting booked. Then there was an ugly incident at Parkhead, Glasgow, in March 2003, when Diouf spat at Celtic fans during a UEFA Cup tie.
"It seemed to me that Diouf had no real interest in football and that he cared nothing about Liverpool," Gerrard wrote in his 2015 autobiography, Steven Gerrard—My Story (h/t the Daily Mail).
The Senegalese signed to fire Liverpool to a long-awaited 19th league title was loaned to Bolton Wanderers for the 2004/05 campaign.
Thankfully for the Reds, he only ever returned to Anfield to play for the opposition.
Hit: Kolo Toure
5 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 71 (one goal)
Transfer fee paid: Free
Picked up for nothing by Brendan Rodgers in the summer of 2013, Kolo Toure quickly became a popular figure with team-mates and supporters alike.
While the Ivory Coast international was past his prime by the time he turned up at Anfield, he was still a valued member of the first-team squad.
"The thing with Kolo is he gives me everything every single day so I know what I am going to get with him,” Rodgers once said, according to Jack de Menezes of The Independent.
Having initially joined on a two-year deal, he extended his stay for a further 12 months in 2015. He even outlasted the manager who signed him, although Jurgen Klopp's arrival—coupled with an injury crisis—increased the centre-back's first-team opportunities.
He came on as a substitute in the 2016 League Cup final, against Manchester City at Wembley, and started the Europa League final against Sevilla later in the year.
While Liverpool lost on both occasions, Toure only briefly stopped smiling.
A committed character, the defender became a social-media sensation. Forget Valentine's Day, February 14 this year was all about #KoloToureAppreciationDay on Twitter.
He also took part in one of the most heart-warming club videos you're ever likely to see, too.
Now reunited with Rodgers at Scottish club Celtic, Toure will always be fondly remembered on Merseyside.
Miss: Oussama Assaidi
6 of 6
Liverpool appearances: 12
Transfer fee paid: £2.4 million
After bringing in Fabio Borini and Joe Allen, Rodgers caught everyone by surprise by making Oussama Assaidi his third signing as Liverpool manager in 2012.
The Moroccan had caught the eye at Dutch club Heerenveen, scoring 10 goals and providing seven assists in the previous season.
While unlikely to make an impact in the first team immediately, Rodgers had high hopes for Assaidi's long-term potential.
"We're not expecting too much too early—he needs time to adapt. But we're delighted he's chosen to come here over a number of other clubs," he said in announcing the transfer, per BBC Sport. "I'll look forward to helping his development and I hope he'll become a very good part of this club."
However, Assaidi never had the chance to develop at Liverpool.
He played a grand total of 583 minutes for the Reds, with just 73 of those coming in the Premier League. Six of his 12 appearances came in the Europa League, while he managed one assist.
He did get to experience English football during two loan spells with Stoke City before Liverpool sold the winger (at a profit) to Al-Ahli in Dubai.
"I came from a small club in Holland and I took a big step to go to Liverpool because they said I was a good player and would get a chance, but I didn’t get the chance," Assaidi send after his departure, per Chris Beesley of the Liverpool Echo.
All statistics used are from LFCHistory.net and Transfermarkt.co.uk unless otherwise stated.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
