Michael Essien among top 10 greatest Africans to play in La Liga

Who are the greatest Africans to have featured in the Spanish top-flight?

Benni McCarthy

The South Africa hitman eliminated Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the First Round of the recently concluded African Legends Cup of Nations, evidence of what a complete package he was during his playing career.

The forward was a Champions League winner with FC Porto, having previously impressed at Ajax, and proved that he could do it in English football when he netted 18 times for modest Blackburn Rovers.

Before moving to Portugal, he enjoyed three full seasons at Celta Vigo, but after netting eight in his first season in Spain, he struggled to build on that campaign.

Noureddine Naybet

One of the classiest defenders ever to emerge from Africa, Naybet was once wanted at Manchester United by Sir Alex Ferguson, and wouldn’t have looked out of place in that star-studded side.

He won La Liga with Deportivo La Coruna in 2000, and featured for Morocco in two World Cups, but never clinched the African crown.

The centre-back was eliminated in the First Round of the African Legends Cup of Nations.

Thomas N'Kono

One of only three goalkeepers to qualify for the African Legends Cup of Nations, N'Kono was a two-time African Footballer of the Year and made the podium on two further occasions.

For context, he's one of only two goalkeepers to win the award and twice kept goal for Cameroon at the World Cup.

He spent almost a decade with Espanyol, enjoyed great success with Canon Yaounde, and is the hero of Gianluigi Buffon, who named his son after the Indomitable Lions great.

Rashidi Yekini

Nigeria's all-time top scorer - and the Super Eagles' greatest striker - Yekini was also the man who scored the West African giants' first World Cup goal when he netted against Bulgaria in 1994.

After immense success in his homeland, notably with Shooting Stars, he would enjoy a fantastic scoring run in Portugal with Vitoria Setubal.

However, he couldn't replicate this form in Spain, where he had a brief spell with Sporting Gijon before returning to Vitoria.

Seydou Keita

Keita is one of the most decorated African players in history, and he certainly achieved great success in Spain.

He left Barcelona after four years, having won 14 trophies under Pep Guardiola and the Malian midfielder has been praised to the hilt by his former boss, who has long viewed the West African as a key component of his magnificent side.

He last played for El Jaish of Qatar, leaving the club in 2017.

Geremi

Geremi won two Premier League winner's medals at Chelsea, to add to his significant honours haul won with Real Madrid.

A hardworking-if modest-operator, the former Newcastle United midfielder was never a genuine Galactico at Real, but his attitude and leadership skills still set him apart, notably during two Champions League triumphs.

Rabah Madjer

While other players have scored more goals in the Champions League—and won more titles—few have played such a major role in a single club’s biggest success than Madjer with FC Porto in 1987.

At the time, they'd never won the European Cup and were outsiders against Bayern Munich.

1-0 down with 13 minutes on the clock, Madjer made his unforgettable intervention, finding space inside the six-yard box, and elegantly flicking the ball into the back of the net with an insouciant backheel.

Porto would go on to win 2-1, as Madjer became the first Arabic player to win the big one, and the year after, he moved on loan to Valencia, netting four La Liga games in 14 outings for Los Murcelagos.

Michael Essien

Perhaps the footballing world never saw the absolute best of Essien’s talent, as injury steadily undermined his dynamism, aggression, and offensive contribution.

Certainly, by the time he joined Real Madrid in 2012, his best days were behind him, although in his prime, Essien was a remarkable physical specimen who ran the show for Chelsea.

The Azerbaijan-based powerhouse won two Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League during his time in London, before being reunited with Jose Mourinho at the Bernabeu.

Yaya Toure

Toure was an integral part of a Barcelona squad that had begun to revolutionize how football was played throughout the world, winning the Champions League before leaving his teammates to enjoy greater success without him.

The Ivorian was seen as a more defensive player by Pep Guardiola than he became Manchester City and played in the holding role or in the defense, which was where he won the UCL in 2009.

The four-time African Player of the Year was among the key inspirations behind City's recent rise to dominance, although he left the club under something of a cloud and currently represents Qingdao Huanghai in China.

Samuel Eto'o

Not only is Eto’o one of Africa's finest frontmen, but one of the world's greatest strikers of all time.

The Indomitable Lion led the line for five years at Barcelona, where he has an impressive collection of titles. In 232 games played for the Catalan giants, he won two Champions League titles, three La Ligas, one Copa del Rey, and four other Spanish Cups.

He also made decisive contributions at vital moments and stands alone as the greatest African player to feature for either Barca or Real Madrid (having represented them briefly at the beginning of his career).