Top Ten Most Memorable... African Football Legends

Roger Milla
“Hippest guy in Africa”
Patriotic attachments aside, our favourite player in the 1990 World Cup was Roger “Mooh” Milla. In 1990 he almost spoilt England’s thunder as a 38-year-old late substitute in the quarter-finals, setting up an equaliser and winning a penalty to go 2-1 ahead, but eventually succumbing to a, it must be said, superior England side. He did return though with his customary hip-jiggling corner flag celebration as a 42-year-old in 1998, earning not only the honour of being the World Cup’s oldest player, but also the World Cup’s oldest goalscorer, bagging a typical strike against Russia. In 2006 he received the title, Best African Player of the Century. We wish he was our grandad.

Nwankwo Kanu
“Unorthodox heart-warmer”
Nwanko Kanu won Olympic gold in 1996 with Nigeria and went on to become African Footballer of the Year. Incredibly, not only did he recover from severe heart problems shortly afterwards and play professionally again, he graduated to the Premier League with Arsenal and then helped guide Portsmouth to an unexpected FA Cup win with his unorthodox genius. In terms of football, Kanu helped put Africa on the map. He was, and still is, an all-round gangly genius and true legend.

Tony Yeboah
“Ghanaian cannoball”
When we think of Tony Yeboah we immediately remember his audacious, net-busting goals for Leeds Utd in the Premier League. He could smash ‘em right hard with both feet and was the bain of goalkeepers the league over, such was the power with which he hit the ball. Check out his top 5 below. Absolutely awesome.

Abedi Pele
“Deft ground-breaker”
Doesn’t just make our list because of a semantic affiliation with a certain Brazilian ace, but because he was the first African footballer to achieve real success at European football level. When Marseille were one of the dominant forces in Europe, he played alongisde Didier Deschamps and Fabian Barthez in a European Cup winning side. In the early 90s he won three consecutive African Footballer of the Year awards, cementing his dribbling genius into footballing history.

George Weah
“Utter genius”
Probably the best footballer ever to come out of the continent. Utterly original talent, sublimely gifted and totally one-of-a-kind, Weah moved to Europe in 1988 to play for Arsene Wenger and Monaco, eventually producing his best work at AC Milan in the mid-90s. Weah was named world best for 1995, becoming the only African player to win the award. He never got to play with his beloved Liberia on the world stage.

Samuel Eto'o
“The perfect striker”
First burst onto the world stage at 17 years of age, already bearing every attribute necessary to become a world-class striker. Fast, predatory and smart, Samuel Eto’o is coveted by every club team in the world.

Papa Bouba Diop
“Immovable object”
Not a name you might have expected to see here, but get this: we think he put Africa fully on the modern football map in 2002. Why? Because in front of the watching world, he scored the only goal in the 1-0 defeat of France in the tournament’s opening match, thus defeating the reigning champions and making Senegal a household name in this country. He continued to played well throughout the tournment and ‘The Wardrobe” is still a powerful force in English football today.

Didier Drogba
“Target man”
Insufferable Chelsea title-winning whingebag on one hand, best player currently in Africa on the other. There be no denying that Mr Drogba is not only the spearhead of a new generation of very exciting Africans, but a geniune world force with a ball and a goal in front of him. At the time of writing he has 40 goals in 59 games for Ivory Coast, in 2004 he was the first player since Kerry Dixon to score over 30 goals in a season for Chelsea, in 2006 he was voted African Footballer of the Year and in 2007 was the Premier League’s top goalscorer. His middle name is Yves.

Benni McCarthy
“Deadly predator”
South Africa’s top goalscorer ever, McCarthy has netted goals all over the world, at teams as illustrious as Ajax, Celta Vigo and Blackburn Rovers. He’s nearing the end of a fairly glittering career now, but still plays with a smile on his face and we genuinely hope he gets some decent game time in next year’s tournament.

Mwepu Ilunga
“Patriotic patsy”
A slightly infamous inclusion this, and not necessarily memorable in a positive way. During Zaire’s (now DR Congo) final group game in 1974 against Brazil, they conceded a free kick. Rivelino spotted the ball but, before he could strike it, Mwepu Ilunga broke out of the defending wall to kick it away. He was cautioned by the ref and generally considered to not be properly aware of the game’s rules. In fact, because of the perceived hilarity of the event, some commentators believe this one action caused Africa as a footballing continent to be put back 10 years.
Ilunga himself has later admiited that because of his team’s under-par performances in the tournament and the brutal regime in his homeland, he was simply scared of conceding again and being tortured back home, hence his rash decision to kick a ball that wasn’t his to kick. A tragic story of political times past then, Ilunga's whereabouts are currently unknown.