Several African players have graced the turfs of English Football and have their names firmly written in the history books of the game.
Jamie Roberts of FourFourTwo compiled his ranking but there is a little twist Prime News Ghana added due to our yardstick and observation
From Drogba to Kolo Toure, here are 10 best African players in the Premier League.
1. Didier Drogba
The Ivorian powerhouse struggled to win over fans at the beginning of his Chelsea career after signing from Marseille for £24m in 2004.
But by the time his first spell with the Blues came to an end in 2012, the striker had notched 157 goals in 341 games and was regarded as one of the club’s greatest ever players.
After he returned to west London for a season in 2014/15, the 6ft 2in striker added a fourth Premier League title to a medal collection that also includes four FA Cups, three League Cups and the Champions League – the latter achieved thanks first to his late equalising goal which took the 2012 final against Bayern Munich to extra time, and second via his winning penalty in the shootout.
Drogba goes down as one of the defining strikers of the Premier League; a big-game player who changed the way strikers of his type were thought of.
He was well deserving of his king-like exit Chelsea team-mates carried him off the pitch in his final performance at Stamford Bridge.
2. Yaya Toure
While England had the Neville brothers, Ivory Coast have the Toures. No doubting who the best player of that quartet is.
After joining his older brother Kolo in Manchester City in 2010 after a successful spell at Barcelona, box-to-box midfielder Yaya began to dominate, bagging eight goals and eight assists in his first season in England.
The former Barça man established himself as something of a set-piece sensation before his City career began to peter out, and currently has over 80 City goals to his name – 24 of them coming in a majestic 2013/14 season, when he won the second of his Premier League titles.
Recent history hasn't been kind to Toure – partly his own doing – but in years to come he should be remembered for what he was: one of the finest midfielders in Premier League history.
3. Michael Essien
The Ghanaian is held in such high regard back home that they have erected a statue of the midfielder – albeit one that can rival the (sadly departed) monstrous Cristiano Ronaldo bust for its strangeness.
When he signed for Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea from Lyon in 2005 for £24.4m, Essien was the club’s most expensive signing. By 2007, the tenacious midfielder had become the west London outfit’s first ever African player of the year, and scored their goal of the season in the same campaign with a thunderbolt against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
4. Riyad Mahrez
On his day, the Algerian winger is a joy to watch. Mahrez was an integral part of the Leicester team that shocked the world by winning the Premier League in 2015/16, becoming the first player from his nation to bag a winner’s medal in England’s top flight. The PFA Player of the Year award was worthy recognition for a return of 17 goals in 37 Premier League appearances.
Before joining the Foxes, Mahrez was reportedly warned by friends and family that the style of football in England wouldn’t suit his game – but he has improved astonishingly since arriving from Ligue 2 in 2014 and is now coveted by the continent's top clubs.
Late interest from Manchester City in January 2018 didn't amount to a move away, but the Algerian will surely be a Champions League player again in 2018/19 – wherever that may be.
5. Emmanuel Adebayor
 
The Togo striker’s reputation has somewhat been tarnished by off-field antics, but his ability shouldn't be doubted.
Adebayor made his name in England with Arsenal following a 2006 move from Monaco, peaking in 2007/08 with 30 goals across all competitions.
A bitter transfer saga followed as Adebayor sought a move to newly moneyed Manchester City, however, much to the disgust of Gunners.Â
As was his wont, he fanned those flames by running the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of Arsenal supporters after netting against the Londoners in a 2009 4-2 City win.
After a spell on loan at Real Madrid – where he won the only trophy of his career (2010/11 Copa del Rey) – Adebayor annoyed Arsenal fans once more by joining local rivals Tottenham, where he spent a relatively successful four years and scored 42 times in 113 appearances.
Unfortunately for Crystal Palace, the 6ft 3in forward couldn’t replicate his scoring prowess at Selhurst Park in 2016, leaving with just a solitary goal to his name in 15 outings. He did enough to record 97 Premier League goals, though – the second-highest total by an African player.
6. Nwankwo Kanu
Similar to his former team-mate Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu spent his early career at Ajax, endured an abbreviated stint in Italy with Inter, then flourished at Arsenal. While the languid Nigerian forward isn’t as feted as Bergkamp, Kanu’s £4.15m transfer to Arsenal in 1999 proved great value.
He played 197 games during his spell at Highbury, helping the club win two Premier League titles and a pair of FA Cups. His finest individual moment was a 15-minute hat-trick against Chelsea which helped the Gunners turn a 2-0 deficit into a famous victory.
After leaving Arsenal in 2004, Kanu had successful spells at West Brom and then Portsmouth, where he scored the only goal of the 2008 FA Cup Final to deliver the trophy for Harry Redknapp's side. Not bad for a 45-year… sorry; a 31-year-old, as he clearly was at the time.
Similar to his former team-mate Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu spent his early career at Ajax, endured an abbreviated stint in Italy with Inter, then flourished at Arsenal. While the languid Nigerian forward isn’t as feted as Bergkamp, Kanu’s £4.15m transfer to Arsenal in 1999 proved great value.
He played 197 games during his spell at Highbury, helping the club win two Premier League titles and a pair of FA Cups. His finest individual moment was a 15-minute hat-trick against Chelsea which helped the Gunners turn a 2-0 deficit into a famous victory.
After leaving Arsenal in 2004, Kanu had successful spells at West Brom and then Portsmouth, where he scored the only goal of the 2008 FA Cup Final to deliver the trophy for Harry Redknapp's side. Not bad for a 45-year… sorry; a 31-year-old, as he clearly was at the time.
7. Mohammed Salah
A short stint at Chelsea from Basel in 2014 was a failure. A loan move to Fiorentina in Italy proved to be the begining of his greatness.
He later joined Roma. On 22 June 2017, Salah agreed a transfer to Liverpool. He signed a long-term contract with the Reds for an initial €42m fee that could rise to up to €50m.
The rest is history as Liverpool fans can testify. Now the darling boy at Anfield, the Egyptian has been a revelation so far in English Premier League.
Salah currently has 30 goals in the Premier League and 40 accross all competitions for Liverpool.
He has been the heart of everything Liverpool this season and currently enjoying his best year in Football.
Salah’s overall total of 40 goals is the most in a single season by a Liverpool player in the Premier League era, beating a total of 36 goals by Robbie Fowler in the 1995-96 campaign.
He has also broken Fernando Torres’ record of 33 goals making him the Liverpool player with the most goals in a debut season.
He has been shortlisted for the PFA Player of the Year award with many tipping him to win.
8. Jay-Jay Okocha
So good they named him twice, according to Bolton fans. Memories of the north-west club in the early 2000s are usually centred around Okocha’s dazzling footwork; both with the ball and while dancing with Big Sam.
The Nigerian was a marquee signing for Allardyce’s men when he arrived on a free from PSG, and his star quality was apparent from the off: Okocha regularly impressed alongside fellow big-name stars including Ivan Campo and Youri Djorkaeff, helping transform Bolton from relegation candidates to European challengers. In 2004/05 they finished a highest-ever sixth.
During his four years at the Reebok, the midfield maestro provided Bolton fans with plenty of glorious memories – in particular, a corking winning goal against West Ham in 2003.
9. Kolo Toure
The elder of the Toure brothers holds the distinction of winning the Premier League with two different clubs. The Ivorian defender, who apparently tackled Arsene Wenger on the training ground before signing for Arsenal from ASEC Mimosas, was part of the Invincibles side which went through the 2003/04 season unbeaten in the league.
After over 300 games for the Gunners, the centre-back left to enjoy spells at Manchester City – where he added his second title in 2011/12 – and Liverpool. His personality won fans over wherever he went, even as the quality of his defending declined.
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10. John Obi Mikel
The Nigerian midfielder originally made headlines in England when he was photographed in a Manchester United shirt at a press conference in 2005, before a year-long transfer saga between the Old Trafford club and Chelsea ensued. The then-teenager eventually joined the Blues in 2006 for£16m – £4m to his club Lyn in Oslo, plus a further £12m to the Red Devils.