Are Africans peaking in the English Premier League?

“The Egyptian King won the match ball after scoring a hatrick and gave away his Man Of The Watch Award to James Millner, who clocked 500 premier league appearances in the tie. Last season’s golden boot winner and first runners up to the FIFA Best Male Player of the Year award is finally silencing critics who labelled him a “one-time season wonder.””

— Dennis Takaendesa, FirstTouch Africa

We have had legendary African icons repping the continent in the world’s most watched club football league, the English Premier League. I am talking about the likes of Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto’o, the tall striker in Nwanko Kanu and even the controversial Emmanuel Adebayor who represented both of the North London clubs in Arsenal and Tottenham. It’s easy to remember forwards, but they are not all of the Africans who played the game at the highest level. Do you remember Lauren? The Arsenal defender who owned the right wing of the famous “Invincibles” setup? More interestingly, now more than ever – it seems African players are reaching unprecedented levels. They are becoming the extra special toppings of the Premier League cake.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal FC looks on prior to the UEFA Europa League Group E match between Sporting CP and Arsenal at Estadio Jose Alvalade on October 25, 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal.

(Oct. 24, 2018 - Source: Getty Images Europe)

Over the weekend, we once again saw Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leading the line for the Arsenal. Before that, in midweek, the Gabonese captain had two delightful chances of extending his lead at the top of the scoring charts and required perhaps the world’s best goalkeeper to deny him twice after two wonderfully worked shots. Over the weekend, he was also not on the scoring sheet but put in a solid striker performance, eventually serving up the only assist of the match as Lucas Torreira scored the only goal of the game. Arsenal consequently stayed close to top four positions and did not fall out any further away from the leading title challengers in Liverpool and Manchester City. Which other African is evidencing this peak?

Idrissa Gueye of Everton slides in to tackle Luciano Vietto of Fulham as Lucas Digne of Everton looks on during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Fulham FC at Goodison Park on September 29, 2018 in Liverpool, United Kingdom.

(Sept. 28, 2018 - Source: Alex Livesey/Getty Images Europe)

Mohamed Salah was back amongst the goals, plenty goals for that matter as Liverpool walked away 4-0 winners at difficult Bournemouth, moving above City to the top of the standings. The Egyptian King won the match ball after scoring a hatrick and gave away his Man Of The Watch Award to James Millner, who clocked 500 premier league appearances in the tie. Last season’s golden boot winner and first runners up to the FIFA Best Male Player of the Year award is finally silencing critics who labelled him a “one-time season wonder.”

It’s not only the forwards that give us something to pride in but other players as well. For instance, Everton’s Idrissa Gueye is only second to Crystal Palace’s Wan Bissaka on tackles won this entire campaign. Twice as much as the likes of Arsenal’s heralded signing in Lucas Torreira or the FIFA World XI finalist in Ng’olo Kante. The Senegalese is still pretty much an underrated midfield gem.

Conclusively, just looking at the premier league scoring charts and seeing Aubameyang and Salah tied at the top with ten goals each just goes a long way in highlighting the immediate dominance of Africans in the English Premier League.

EPL: Matchday 10 African Round Up

Crystal Palace vs Arsenal

Eric Bailly of Manchester United speaks with Marcelino Garcia Toral, Manager of Valencia after the Group H match of the UEFA Champions League between Manchester United and Valencia at Old Trafford on October 2, 2018 in Manchester, United Kingdom.

(Oct. 1, 2018 - Source: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images Europe)

Arguably Arsenal’s best players this season, Alex Iwobi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could not lift their team over the line and achieve a 12th straight win against their opponents. Crystal Palace had their Ivorian forward, Wilfried Zaha who gave the defenders a torrid time during the course of the match. The match ended in a 2-2 draw in the London derby with Aubameyang claiming a goal after a controversial hand of God by the French forward, Alexandre Lacazette. Wilfried Zaha had a hand on the final result as he won a penalty for Palace which eventually led to an equalizer.

Manchester United vs Everton

Jose Mourinho’s men claimed a 2-1 victory at home. The Red Devils continue to look like a team on the up with some decent performances of late. Eric Bailly, however, continued his exile as he watched the match from the stands with Mourinho preferring Smalling and Lindelof at the back. The club also received an injury boost with the return of Marcos Rojo which leaves the Ivorian further down the pecking order.

Chelsea vs Burnley

Riyad Mahrez of Manchester City celebrates after scoring his team's second goal during the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Oxford United and Manchester City at Kassam Stadium on September 25, 2018 in Oxford, England.

(Sept. 24, 2018 - Source: Julian Finney/Getty Images Europe)

Maurizio Sari’s men were at their best against Sean Dyche’s Burnley on Sunday. They thumped the home team by 4 goals without return to stamp their authority in the title race. The former Nigerian international, Victor Moses could not make the bench even in the absence of the on-form Belgian international, Eden Hazard. It seems like history is repeating itself at the club for the African who was surplus to requirements to all the Chelsea coaches but Antonio Conte. The player was sent on loan countless times before the Italian showed faith in him. Victor Moses has to take some time to think about his situation at the club if he wants to save his career in football. The winger deserves better.

Tottenham vs Manchester City

Wilfred Ndidi of Leicester in action during the Premier League match between Leicester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers at The King Power Stadium on August 18, 2018 in Leicester, United Kingdom.

(Aug. 17, 2018 - Source: Michael Regan/Getty Images Europe)

Algerian forward Riyad Mahrez scored the only goal in the soccer match between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur at the Wembley Stadium on the 29th of October, 2018. The new Manchester City forward has been preferred on the right side of the midfield by Pep Guardiola ahead of the likes of Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane. He has started the last 5 matches across all competitions with a total of 4 goals and 1 assist. Mahrez is starting to regain that fear factor he had in Leicester City’s title winning year. With him, Manchester City are even stronger.

Leicester City vs West Ham

Leicester City came back from a goal down to draw 1-1 against 10-man West Ham United. The away team lost their captain, Mark Noble to a red card after a reckless tackle in the second half. Nigerian defensive midfielder Wilfred Ndidi came to the rescue for Leicester and scored a deflected shot from 30 yards out. The result of the match was overshadowed by the events that followed shortly after full-time. A tragic accident occurred near the staff car park at the King Power Stadium. A helicopter with 5 passengers crashed and burst into flames after Leicester City’s match against West Ham. Among the deceased was the owner of Leicester City,

FT Impact Player Series: Is Man City's Ben Mendy, Superhuman?

We always like to pause and zoom in a little on some unique talents in the game today. Today, we are crossing over to the blue-half of Manchester and think out loud about the incredible talent that is Benjamin Mendy, a French defender with African roots, Senegal to be specific. Let us briefly look at three things that Benjamin Mendy gives the Premier League champions, Manchester City. You will give a ruling at the end on whether the 24-year-old is human or an alien meant to be playing some unknown galaxy football.

Benjamin Mendy of Manchester City in action during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Huddersfield Town at Etihad Stadium on August 19, 2018 in Manchester, United Kingdom.

(Aug. 18, 2018 - Source: Michael Regan/Getty Images Europe)

Energy, pace and power

Mendy rose to prominence in the 2016/17 season where he was a key defensive component of the young Monaco team that won the French Ligue 1 and reached the semi-final of the UEFA Champions League. His switch to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City the following season for £52 million pounds, a then record move for a defender, was part of the infamous exodus of talent from Monaco with the likes of Bakayoko, Mbappe and Bernardo Silva also leaving for big monies. In particular, Guardiola’s acqusition of Mendy for that kind of price seemed ridiculous at the time especially given the fact he had likewise spent big on other fullbacks in the form of Kyle Walker and Danilo - but he sure had a plan and how dare we questioned the wisdom of the Spaniard. The record 100 Premier League points amassed in a title winning campaign for Manchester City was the result. Of course we did not see a lot of Mendy in this record-breaking season because of the ligament injury that sidelined him for the greater part of the season. Now that he is back, most are starting to appreciate why Pep brought him to the club. No one owns the left flank of the pitch like Ben does. He literally runs up and down that channel for the full ninety minutes without showing any signs of exhaustion. His built body allows him to shove most if not all opponents with ease and his carefree personality even shows up on the pitch in form of the risks he takes upfield. Do not be mistaken, Mendy is no dribbler or slick like “modern full-backs” such as Marcelo, Jordi Alba, Alex Sandro or Dani Alves. It’s simply raw energy, pace and power with a defined ability to make pin-point crosses into the box. Think of him as a really accurate bulldozer that does not just go through stuff senselessly.

Even though Manchester City brought only Riyad Mahrez in the summer, with Mendy back, they are looking anew. Guardiola’s tactical tweaks have seen Ben Mendy playing as hybrid and left-back /central midfielder, something we are not sure has ever existed. In his first four premier league appearances, Mendy has provided three assists, made 25 crosses into the box, created two big chances and was also heavily involved in two other goals. Yes, its no cheap talk here - Mendy is real.

“We could not demand Delph and Zinchenko to do what Benjamin Mendy does, in terms of going up and down the wing, attacking space and having his physicality because they have different physical conditions.

We saw Mendy’s quality at Monaco in France, his quality to go forward. When a player has this quality, we must use it, because it’s his ability to create problems.”

— Pep Guardiola, Manchester City Manager

A cool kid

Benjamin Mendy of France celebrates following his sides victory in the 2018 FIFA World Cup Final between France and Croatia at Luzhniki Stadium on July 15, 2018 in Moscow, Russia.

(July 14, 2018 - Source: Matthias Hangst/Getty Images Europe)

Besides the 2018 world cup winner’s footballing abilities, Ben Mendy is what everyone would wish for in a team’s dressing room. Within days of arriving at Guardiola’s camp, the Manchester All or nothing documentary reveals that the Frenchman was already cracking some jokes and teasing his new teammates in beginner’s English spoken with his French accent. A personality truly unique to fearless champions. He is one of the loudest guys in the dressing room, perhaps the most active football player on social media who always has one or two things to laugh about. You may remember the person in jeans who uncomfortably ran onto the pitch to celebrate Raheem Sterling’s last minute winner against Southampton in the 2017/18 EPL season, that was injured Benjamin Mendy. He even started taking selfies with Sterling afterwards in front of cameras. That’s just the way Ben is, serious and unserious at the same time. Many people like him off-the pitch and he is simply iresistable on it, how can it be? Is he human and perhaps the 21st century definition of perfection.

Most team’s battles are won 60% off the pitch and 40% on it, with Ben Mendy adding value both ways - France and Manchester City really have a lot to be thankful of. Just ask Olivier Giroud, a striker who was on a goal drought stretching back to the pre-world cup fixtures, Mendy came very late on for France as a substitute in their recent UEFA Nations League clash with the Netherlands and saved the day. Courtesy of a delightful Mendy cross.

“Mendy is Mendy. He is what he is. Sometimes you want to kill him. Sometimes you say ‘wow, what a player we have. Mendy has a lot of things to improve. Hopefully we can convince him to be calm and forget a bit the social media and focus on what he has to do.”

— Pep Guardiola, Manchester City Manager

FT English Premier League Preview: How will Mahrez fair at Manchester City?

The Price Tag

Riyad Karim Mahrez could be the most expensive African player in history after sealing a £60 million move to Manchester City. The five-year deal is believed to reach an astounding £75 million with add-ons and would very much surpass the Congolese, Cedric Bakambu’s £65 million switch to Chinese Super League side, Beijing Guoan. The 27-year-old Algerian international has also become the Cityzens’ record signing, which speaks volumes about just how much the club admire and what is expected of him. This leads me to the first question many will be keen to see answered, whether Riyad will live up to his perceived value.

He has been to the mountain-top

Do you remember the fairytale of the 2015/16 Premier League season, where Leicester City lifted the trophy against all odds? Riyad was the man at the heart of Claudio Ranieri’s set up, terrorising opposition, creating chances, scoring goals - mostly from the right wing side, always cutting inside and slipping away from defenders with what became known as the ‘Mahrez chop’. His partnership with Jamie Vardy ensured the latter would also write his name in the English record books for quite a number of records. Even Riyad looked great on paper too, scoring 17 goals and serving up 11 assists. That year, 2016, became his ‘Mo Salah’ year getting all sorts of awards. In fact, he almost matches Salah on accolades received, except that he did not outscore his Leicester teammate who won the golden boot. Mahrez’s track record proves that he will unlikely be unfazed by the challenge of City who happens to be a town, subset of a world he has dominated before, a world that is English football. Lest I get carried away talking about the past, let’s look ahead into his City future.

New level, new heights, and new dreams

After being a subject of many failed attempts for a move away from Leicester since the fairytale season, Riyad finally got what most people wished for him. A bigger club, with a bigger fan base, top quality players, and definitely bigger dreams. He had reached a ceiling with the Foxes and with all due respect to Leicester, it wouldn’t have been a fun show seeing his immense ability and potential only in use to help a mid-table club stay afloat. In my opinion, Mahrez’s ability on the ball and to take-on players is second to only a handful of professional footballers all around the world. Since 2015/16 season, only Hazard, Sanchez and Zaha have completed more dribbles in the EPL. See the company he is keeping, Zaha is another African who actually deserves a blog post on this site. After a disappointing 2016/17 campaign with Leicester where he only managed 4 goals and 2 assists, Riyad redeemed himself in the follow-up, scoring 12 times and registering 10 assists. Under the mentorship of Pep Guardiola and the company of the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Leroy Sane, David Silva and Aguero, he is probably dreaming bigger. A champions league triumph perhaps, a place among the G.O.A.Ts of the football world maybe - the sky is really the limit now.

Will he actually get a real chance?

It is no secret that the Premier League champions have unparalleled depth in the quality of their squad. More so, given the attitude of the almost unpredictable tactician in Guardiola, no player is safe from sitting some matches out. Not even the record signing. Mahrez’s preferred position is on either wing, especially the right one, where Raheem Sterling largely operated from, scoring 18 Premier League goals from also serving up 11 assists. Bernardo Silva who is possibly City’s best player in the pre-season tour so far will also be vying for more minutes on either wing, let alone the Germany prodigal child, Leroy Sane who scooped the PFA Young Player of the Year Award in City’s title-winning season. I actually think Riyad could get some preference, especially on the right wing as he is able to hug the touchline, just like Sane does on the left - something that Guardiola once which Sterling has come up short of in recent times. He also offers something more, in terms of the ability to score long range shots, which we have hardly seen Sterling do. At the end of the day, only time will tell, but best guaranteed that whatever chance he gets, he will surely be keen to make the most of it. He is very much aware of the probabilities.

The nitty-gritties

A few things to note out and keep an eye on include; the possibility of Riyad, Aubameyang, Salah, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita rivaling each other for the CAF African Player of the award, now that they are all a big parts of three of the best clubs in the EPL and the rest of the world. Could he possibly even compete for the golden boot if deployed in Sterling’s position, I mean, we are very much aware of his goal-scoring ability. The unsettling factor in the equation of predicting Riyad’s debut season at City is the possibility of injuries stepping in to take away all the fun. Just like any other footballer, he is not completely immune any. He has already survived a major scare in pre-season after being taken-off a pre-season match against Bayern Munich as a result of an ankle injury. Hopefully, it’s the last of it.

Let us know how you think Riyad will fair at City in the comment box below. Let the games begin!