Sports
China, New Attraction For African Stars
A new eastern frontier has opened up for African players, with a handful of the continent’s top names heading to China to play in its top flight, the Super League.
After Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba left newly-crowned European champions Chelsea for Shanghai Shenhua last month, a number of other seasoned African internationals have quickly followed suit.
Nigeria striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni departed English side Blackburn Rovers for Guangzhou R&F on a three-year deal, swiftly followed by Mali’s Frederic Kanoute, who signed a two-year contract with Beijing Guoan, having left Spanish side Sevilla.
They have now been joined by Kanoute’s compatriot, Seydou Keita, who has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Dalian Aerbin, after winning 14 trophies with Spanish giants Barcelona.
“ You cannot just take the money, have fun and come back, because when you go there and you don’t perform, they terminate your contract”
Former Ghana international Kwame Ayew
So, what is attracting some of Africa’s biggest names to China, besides the obvious lure of higher wages?
One of the wider benefits for the clubs is that the acquisition of such high-profile African names could well have its advantages off the field.
“China is expanding rapidly in mining and natural resources in Africa,” James Porteous of the South China Morning Post said.
“Perhaps the clubs also see opportunities to boost the marketing and political links between China and Africa in that regard.”
But the financial benefits are also a big factor in attracting players to China.
“The league – or at least a handful of clubs – is awash with money from club owners, who are often developers riding the huge property bubble in China,” Porteous added.
Current league leaders Guangzhou Evergrande are owned by Evergrande Real Estate Group, whose chairman Xu Jiayin is China’s richest man. He is said to have injected as much as US$70m in the club in the past couple of years.
The trend of wealthy owners injecting massive sums into football clubs is one that fans around the world are all-too familiar with.
What is unclear is just how big the sums involved are, in the relatively unheralded Chinese top flight.
Guangzhou Evergrande’s coach is the Italian 2006 World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi, who, with a reported annual salary of $16m, is now one of the world’s highest-paid managers.
As for the African recruits, Drogba is reportedly on around $350,000 per week, with Yakubu said to be earning an estimated $150,000 weekly.
While it is unclear how accurate these sums are, what is without doubt is that for players like Drogba and Kanoute, both 34 years old, the kinds of sums on offer make China an attractive prospect at this stage of their careers.
“Without knowing any of the players, I would suspect one last payday is the prime motivator for all of them,” Porteus said.
“However, once in China they will find a fast-paced, rapidly modernising country.
“Shanghai is as cosmopolitan as any world city and Drogba and [Nicolas] Anelka will have no shortage of luxury shops and restaurants to spend their money in.”
Yakubu, however, is insisting that money was not the reason he moved to China.
“After hearing the club’s plans, I realised I had to join. Money wasn’t a factor,” Yakubu said as he was officially unveiled by his new club Guangzhou R&F.
“Since Anelka arrived [at Shanghai Shenhua from Chelsea], more and more top-flight players are coming to China, and our arrival can help improve the quality of the nation’s football.”
The Super League sides will also hope attendances will be boosted by their new star attractions, with current gates at Shanghai Shenhua’s Hongkou Stadium averaging around just 10,000 fans.
Former Ghana international Kwame Ayew, who played in China for four years between 2002 and 2006, says he is “excited” by the fresh influx of African players into the country’s top flight.
“I am very proud because I was one of the first to go there. Now to have players like Drogba and Anelka going there, I feel very happy about it,” Ayew said.
“It’s not just about the financial incentives. It’s a different world, a different culture. Also, football is not really exported from China. They want the Chinese league to be known all over the world.
“Whether you like it or not, China is a rising power in economic terms, so why not in football? It is the reason why players in their numbers are moving to the Chinese league.”
Ayew, who is the brother of the former African Footballer of the Year Abedi Pele, does have some cautionary words, however, for African players moving to the country where he was top scorer in 2004.
“A few African and European players and coaches have been there, and some of them had good experiences, but some did not.
“[That is] because it is very demanding. You cannot just take the money, have fun and come back, because when you go there and you don’t perform, they terminate your contract.
“This has happened to quite a number of people both from the west and from Africa that I know of.”
Stephen Fottrell
Liverpool’s season of abject misery worsened as they were beaten with embarrassing ease by a hugely impressive Nottingham Forest at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s Premier League champions were looking to bounce back from a heavy defeat at Manchester City, but instead ran into a Forest side revitalised under new manager Sean Dyche and looking back to their best.
Liverpool head coach Slot gave £125m British record signing Alexander Isak a start, but he was totally anonymous once more and only lasted 67 minutes.
Forest went ahead after 33 minutes when defender Murillo shot powerfully past fit-again Liverpool keeper Alisson to subdue an already anxious Anfield.
Igor Jesus had a second ruled out for handball, but Forest doubled their advantage 39 seconds after the break when former Liverpool defender Neco Williams set up Nicola Savona for a crisp finish in front of The Kop.
Liverpool could barely raise a response in a desperate display, Forest increasing their lead 12 minutes from time when Morgan Gibbs-White scored after Alisson saved from Omari Hutchinson.
It means Liverpool, who lie 11th before Saturday’s late fixture, have now lost six of their past seven Premier League games as Slot’s near £450m summer spending spree comes under further scrutiny.
Forest, meanwhile, are surging away from the relegation zone and are up to 16th.
Michael Olise scored twice and provided a hat-trick of assists as Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich came from two goals down to thrash Freiburg.
The visitors stunned the defending champions by taking a 2-0 lead after just 17 minutes when Yuito Suzuki scored from close range and Johan Manzambi rose highest to head home Jan-Niklas Beste’s corner.
Bayern, who had not lost in the league since March, responded superbly and had restored parity by half-time.
Teenager Lennart Karl fired into the bottom corner from Olise’s pass in the 22nd minute and set up the Frenchman for a fierce finish in first-half injury-time, although Freiburg goalkeeper Noah Atubolu should have done better.
Bayern took control in the second period as Dayot Upamecano headed home Olise’s corner to put them ahead for the first time.
England captain Harry Kane netted his 14th league goal of the campaign on the hour mark, before Olise made it three assists when he threaded a pass through for Nicolas Jackson to finish at the first time of asking in the 78th minute.
Winger Olise completed a sensational afternoon with his second of the game six minutes later, driving at the Freiburg defence and curling into the far corner.
A 10th victory in the first 11 games left Bayern eight points clear of second-placed Bayer Leverkusen, while Freiburg remain 10th in the standings.
Vincent Kompany’s side visit Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday with both sides having a perfect record of four wins so far in the league phase of the competition.
AS FAR Morocco Win African Women’s Champions League (8)
AS FAR held firm to beat debutants ASEC Mimosas 2-1 in the African Women’s Champions League final and become continental champions for the second time.
Hanane Ait El Haj put the Moroccan club ahead from the penalty spot in the 13th minute after Safa Banouk had been tripped by Aboa Yapo.
ASEC Mimosas rallied after the break and Ami Priscal Diallo netted a fine header from Sopie Brou’s cross to drag the Ivory Coast club level 10 minutes into the second half.
But AS FAR were handed a second spot-kick in the closing stages when Noura Diarra committed a rash challenge on Sofia Bouftini.
This time it was Zineb Redouani who stepped up to stroke home in the 85th minute and restore her side’s lead.
Asastasie Gbehi came close to forcing extra time but she poked wide of the post in stoppage time, and the centre-back was sent off after the full-time whistle for dissent.
AS FAR move level with South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns as two-time winners of the title, having first lifted the trophy in 2022.
The Rabat-based side will now take on Chinese’s Wuhan Jiangda on 14 December for a place at next year’s Fifa Women’s Champions Cup.
The winner of that match will face European champions Arsenal in the semi-finals of the inaugural competition early next year in London.
Barcelona moved to the top of La Liga on Saturday with an emphatic win over 10-man Athletic Club in their first match at the Spotify Camp Nou since May 2023.
Robert Lewandowski scored their first goal back in their iconic home, which had been closed for extensive renovations, in the fourth minute.
Ferran Torres then netted twice in the second half, each assisted by wonderful skill from Lamine Yamal, who was aged just 15 in his only previous Nou Camp appearance.
Fermin Lopez also struck in the 48th minute, while visiting midfielder Oihan Sancet was sent off for a crude challenge on Lopez just six minutes later.
Large sections of the Nou Camp remained closed for the game, which was played in front of a 45,157 crowd.
The rebuilding work, which was originally scheduled to be finished in November 2024, will eventually increase the stadium’s capacity to 105,000.
Barca moved to 31 points from 13 games and top on goal difference, but Real Madrid had the chance to replace them, if they won at Elche in their game in hand, late last night.
Poland striker Lewandowski got his side off to the perfect start when he drove his low shot in off the arm of Athletic Club goalkeeper Unai Simon for an eighth league goal of the season.
The home side extended their lead in first-half added time as Yamal’s superb pass off the outside of his foot set up Torres for a good finish.
Lopez made it 3-0 three minutes after the restart, drilling a shot past Simon from near the penalty spot.
Sancet’s tackle from behind on Lopez was initially deemed a yellow card, but upgraded to red after the referee consulted with the video assistant referee (VAR).
And just before full-time, Yamal twisted and turned before sending Torres away to claim his second goal, which was originally disallowed for offside but overturned following a VAR check.
It was a dream return to their ground, with the reigning Spanish champions having mostly played at the 55,000 capacity Olympic Stadium on the city’s Montjuic hill since renovations on the Nou Camp began in June 2023.
They were forced to play two matches at the 6,000-capacity Johan Cruyff Stadium, home to their women’s team, this season after failing to get a permit for the Nou Camp through safety reasons.
Pogba Returns To Action In Ligue 1 (6)
Paul Pogba played his first minutes of professional football in more than two years as he came off the bench during Monaco’s 4-1 defeat by Rennes at the weekend.
The 32-year-old was introduced in the 85th minute at Rennes’ Roazhon Park, though his side were already four goals and a player down, following a red card for captain Denis Zakaria.
French World Cup winner Pogba broke down in tears when he joined Ligue 1 club Monaco last summer, after his four-year doping ban was reduced to 19 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).
Pogba’s last competitive appearance was 811 days ago, when he featured for Juventus in a Serie A match against Empoli on 3 September 2023. He left Juventus by mutual consent in November 2024.
Pogba was provisionally banned from football for four years after a positive test for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in February 2024, following a doping test in August 2023.
Pogba maintained it was a mistake and that he was given a supplement without knowing it contained a banned substance.
The former Manchester United midfielder was permitted to return to football in March following the decision to reduce his ban.
Pogba watched from the bench as goals from Abdelhamid Ait Boudlal, Mahdi Camara, Breel Embolo and Ludovic Blas put Rennes out of sight.
Fellow substitute Mika Biereth pulled a goal back for Monaco in the 95th minute, but a second consecutive 4-1 defeat means Sebastien Pocognoli’s side drop to eighth in the table with 20 points after 13 games.
