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The list of greatest African strikers will focus squarely on those players who played primarily as strikers for club and country.
Africa has been a superb hub for football talents for generations and continues to produce top players for clubs around the world.
Names like Nwankwo Kanu, Hossam Hassan Hossam, Roger Milla, Asamoah Gyan, Abedi Pele and George Weah and Samuel Eto’O helped put the continent on the global map with their incredible abilities on the ball.
But who are the greatest strikers to have come out of Africa? Here is our top 5 strikers of all time.
5. Abedi Pele (Ghana)
Arguably one of the best players to come out of Ghana and Africa, Abedi Pele remains a legend of the game.
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The father of Dede and Jordan Ayew was the first African player to be nominated for the FIFA World Player of the year award.
Pele played a key role in the team that led Marseille to their first and only UEFA Champions League title. He was Ghana’s all-time top scorer with 33 goals in 73 before Asamoah Gyan leapfrogged him.
4. Roger Milla (Cameroon)
Roger Milla is renowned for being the oldest player to score at the FIFA world cup, a feat he achieved on two occasions, at the ages of 38 and 42.
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Milla scored 43 goals in 77 matches for the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon and was named the African Footballer of the year also on two occasions.
Now 70, Milla also finished as the top scorer of the Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, on two occasions.
3. Didier Drogba (Cote d’Ivoire)
The Ivorian star made his name and became widely known in the popular English Premier League with London side, Chelsea football club.
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Didier Drogba became one of the most respected and feared strikers in the world during his time with the Blues, making a name as the man for the big occasions.
With 104 goals for Chelsea, the now 44-year-old established himself as one of the best strikers from Africa to ever play in the PL. He is also Africa’s top scorer in the Champions League (44 goals) and leads the chart for Ivory Coast with 65 goals.
2. George Weah (Liberia)
This list will not be complete without the mention of the only African to be named the FIFA World footballer of the year, George Obong Weah.
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Born in Monrovia 54 years ago, he started his career in his home country before going on to star for some of the biggest clubs in the world - Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, Chelsea and Marseille.
Weah was named in the FIFA XI on two occasions, won the African footballer of the year three times, finished as top scorer of the UEFA Champions League once and also took home the Ballon d’Or. He ventured into politics and became President of Liberia in 2017.
1. Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon)
Easily one of the most skilled strikers to ever come out of Africa, Samuel Eto’o Fils remains a certified legend of the game.
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Eto lived the dream, he is the top scorer for Cameroon, RCD Mallorca and the all-time top scorer in the Africa Cup of Nations.
He won the AFCON on two occasions with Cameroon, he also has an Olympic gold medal among other individual awards. Eto is also a four-time African football of the year winner.
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