This guide lists the top 10 best African players In Serie A history, considering factors like the number of goals scored, trophies won, impact on their respective teams, and overall influence on Serie A.
Who Are The Greatest African Footballers In Serie A History?
Here are the top 10 best African players In Serie A history:
1. George Weah
George Weah is widely regarded as one of the greatest African footballers to have graced Serie A, Italy’s top football league. He made a notable mark during his time with AC Milan, joining the club in 1995.
Under the guidance of coach Fabio Capello, Weah played a key role in Milan’s triumph in the Italian league in 1996.
He formed a formidable attacking trio alongside Roberto Baggio and Dejan Savićević, with Marco Simone also contributing on occasion.
Weah’s skill and goal-scoring ability made him a standout player for Milan. One of the most memorable moments of Weah’s career at Milan was his remarkable solo goal against Hellas Verona.
His incredible run from near his penalty area, leaving opponents behind, topping in a sensational goal that showed his exceptional talent.
In 1995, he won prestigious individual awards including the Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year, becoming the first African player to achieve such honors.
His success on the field also earned him recognition as the African Player of the Year multiple times. However, Weah’s time at Milan wasn’t without controversy.
He was involved in an incident with Portuguese defender Jorge Costa, which led to a ban from European matches.
Despite this setback, Weah’s sportsmanship was acknowledged as he received the FIFA Fair Play Award in 1996.
2. Samuel Eto’o
Samuel Eto’o is one of the top 10 best African footballers In Serie A history. His time at Inter Milan, especially during the 2009–10 season, stands out as one of the highlights of his illustrious career.
In 2009, after a historic treble-winning campaign with Barcelona, Eto’o made the move to Inter Milan. His arrival was a great moment in Serie A history.
Despite the departure of star players like Zlatan Ibrahimović, Eto’o’s impact was immediate and powerful. He quickly established himself as a key player.
During his debut season in Serie A, Eto’o showed his goal-scoring prowess by netting 12 goals, helping Inter claim their fifth consecutive league title.
His contributions weren’t limited to domestic success; he also played an important role in Inter’s journey to Champions League glory.
In the final against Bayern Munich, Eto’o assisted in both goals, securing Inter’s first European title in 45 years.
The following season, Eto’o continued to impress, setting a new personal record with 37 goals in all competitions.
Despite leaving Inter Milan in 2011, Eto’o’s legacy in Serie A stayed. He made a brief return to the league with Sampdoria before going to play In Turkey and Qatar.
3. Mohamed Kallon
Mohamed Kallon is often regarded as one of the top African talents In Serie A history. His time in Serie A started when he signed with Inter Milan after spending a season in Sweden with Spånga.
During his time with Inter Milan, Kallon made a notable impact. In the 2001-2002 season, he emerged as a key player, despite initially being considered a third or fourth-choice striker.
Due to injuries to key players like Ronaldo and Recoba, Kallon got more opportunities to prove his talent. He played 29 Serie A matches and scored nine goals, making him the team’s second-highest scorer for the season.
Inter Milan narrowly missed out on the league title that season, finishing in third place. In the following season, Kallon faced some challenges due to injuries, but he still managed to contribute significantly to the team’s performance.
He played nine times in Serie A and scored five goals. Regardless of these contributions, Inter Milan finished second in the league.
However, Kallon encountered a setback during the 2003-2004 season when he tested positive for a banned substance called nandrolone after a Serie A match against Udinese.
As a result, he was banned from football for eight months. During this time, he struggled to regain his place in the starting lineup, mainly because of the emergence of young talents like Obafemi Martins and the return of Adriano.
4. Sulley Muntari
Sulley Muntari is another fantastic African footballer to have played in Serie A. His career in the Italian league began when Inter Milan showed interest in him back in 2007.
Despite initial negotiations, he joined Portsmouth that year. However, fate brought him to Inter Milan in 2008, where he quickly made his mark.
In his debut season, Muntari displayed his talent, scoring crucial goals, including one against rivals Juventus. His efforts helped Inter clinch the Serie A title to begin a successful start to his Italian life.
The following season, Muntari continued to impress, contributing important goals and assists as Inter retained their Serie A crown and secured the treble, including the UEFA Champions League title.
His versatility and dedication were key to Inter’s success on both domestic and European fronts. However, with management changes, Muntari faced challenges in the 2010–11 season, leading to a loan move to Sunderland in the English Premier League.
After a brief stint away, he returned to Serie A, this time with AC Milan. During his time at AC Milan, Muntari netted on his debut.
5. Gervinho
Gervinho is one of the most famous African footballers In Serie A history, having begun when Arsenal sold him to A.S. Roma in 2013 for €8 million.
He scored his first goal for Roma in September, helping secure a 2–0 victory against Sampdoria. Plus two goals in a 5–0 win against Bologna set Roma on a path of six consecutive victories.
One of Gervinho’s memorable moments was in the quarter-final of the Coppa Italia in 2014. He scored a spectacular goal against Juventus to help Roma advance to the semi-finals.
In the semi-final against Napoli, Gervinho again scored twice, including a crucial late winner. Gervinho’s success continued into the 2014–15 season, scoring in Roma’s opening match against Fiorentina and netting twice in a Champions League victory over CSKA Moscow.
In 2016, Gervinho joined the Chinese Super League team Hebei China Fortune. Despite a promising start, his time there was tainted by a knee injury in 2016, causing him to miss the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.
However, In 2018, he returned to Serie A, signing with Parma Calcio in 1913. His debut for Parma saw him scoring against S.P.A.L., and he followed it up with a goal against reigning champions Juventus. One of his most remarkable goals was when he ran the length of the pitch to score against Cagliari.
6. Obafemi Martins
Arguably, Obafemi Martins is one of the greatest African footballers to play In Serie A, and It all started when he was signed by Inter Milan in 2001 for a transfer fee of €750,000.
Despite his young age, Martins made an impact, scoring 23 goals for Inter Milan’s youth team in his debut season, helping them secure the Campionato Nazionale Primavera in the 2001–02 season.
Martins’ breakthrough into the first team was in the 2002–03 season, making his league debut against Parma.
His electrifying pace and goal-scoring prowess earned him recognition, and he became a key player for Inter Milan under manager Héctor Cúper.
Martins became the first teenager to score in three consecutive UEFA Champions League seasons. In the 2004–05 season, Martins signed a long-term contract with Inter Milan and continued to impress.
He played a key part in Inter’s successful run in the Coppa Italia, scoring crucial goals including a memorable hat-trick against Bologna.
His impressive form for Inter Milan earned him a call-up to the Nigerian national team for the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations. After his success with Inter Milan, Martins was sold in August 2006 due to the arrival of new strikers.
Throughout his time at Inter Milan, Martins scored a total of 28 goals in 88 league games and 11 goals in European competitions.
7. Kwadwo Asamoah
One of the best African talents In Setrie A history is Kwadwo Asamoah, who established himself as a key player during his time at Udinese.
In July 2012, he moved to Juventus alongside his Udinese teammate Mauricio Isla. This was the beginning of an illustrious period with the Turin giants.
Asamoah’s impact was quick, with a memorable debut in the 2012 Supercoppa Italiana, scoring against Napoli.
During his time at Juventus, Asamoah was instrumental in the club’s success, helping them to multiple Serie A titles and Supercoppa Italiana triumphs.
However, his career was not without setbacks, as he endured a severe knee injury during the 2014–15 season, which sidelined him for a significant period.
Despite the challenges, Asamoah continued to contribute to Juventus before ultimately choosing not to renew his contract in January 2018.
Following his departure from Juventus, Asamoah joined Inter Milan in July 2018. His tenure with Inter showed his versatility and experience, although it was a brief stint.
In February 2021, Asamoah made another move, this time to Cagliari. Notably, he became the most-capped African player in Serie A history.
8. Victor Osimhen
Victor Osimhen is currently one of the African best players In the Serie A with his impressive performances for Napoli.
Osimhen has established himself as a striking force In the game, having signed by Napoli on 31 July 2020 for a record fee of €70 million, potentially rising to €80 million with add-ons.
He scored his first goal for Napoli on 17 October 2020. Fans started following up with his performances as he netted crucial goals, including a brace against Leicester City in the Europa League and a memorable hat-trick against Sassuolo in Serie A.
In the 2022-23 season, Osimhen was an Integral part of Napoli’s historic Serie A title win after 33 years, finishing as the league’s top scorer with 26 goals.
His goal against Udinese made him the joint-highest goalscoring African in Serie A alongside George Weah.
9. Stephen Appiah
Stephen Appiah is considered one of the greatest African footballers to have played in Serie A. He made his move to Serie A in 1997 when he joined Udinese.
At first, he played as a striker but later shifted to a deeper midfield position. Despite facing a setback due to viral hepatitis, he joined Parma in 2000 after overcoming the illness.
Appiah’s impressive performances at Parma caught the attention of defending Serie A champions, Juventus.
They signed him on loan in 2003 with an option for a permanent transfer. During his time at Juventus, he played in important matches like the Coppa Italia final and UEFA Champions League.
However, his second season at Juventus was impacted by concerns over his knee and fitness. After his stint at Juventus, he went on trials with clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and Rubin Kazan but didn’t secure a permanent contract due to fitness issues.
In 2009, Appiah joined Bologna on a free transfer and later moved to Cesena in 2010. He remained with Cesena until the end of the 2010-11 season.
10. Medhi Benatia
Medhi Benatia’s Serie A career started on 1 July 2010 when he joined Udinese, spanning 80 league appearances, during which he showed his defensive prowess and even managed to find the net on six occasions.
In 2013, Benatia sealed a transfer worth €13.5 million to Rmoma, scoring his first goal for Roma on 26 September in a memorable victory against Sampdoria.
With his outstanding performances with Udinese, Juventus secured his services in 2016 on a season-long loan, later opting to make the deal permanent. His time at Juventus was seen by moments of triumph and trouble.
While he celebrated victories like the 2018 Coppa Italia Final, where he scored twice in a resounding 4-0 win over Milan, he also faced challenges, including the controversial penalty decision in the quarter-finals of the Champions League against Real Madrid.
In May 2017, he took a stand against racism, walking out of an interview with RAI Due after being subjected to racial abuse.
His actions resonated beyond the realm of football, highlighting the importance of combating discrimination in sports.