All French Ligue 1 clubs have at least one African footballer in their squad. Some will discover the championship, either because they played last season in Ligue 2, or because they come from abroad. Others, after a promising 2020-2021 fiscal year, will have to confirm.
Moroccan Achraf Hakimi in Paris
He’s only 22, but his CV says a lot about his potential. Born in Madrid (he has dual Spanish and Moroccan nationality) and trained at Real, where a certain Zinedine Zidane made him start in La Liga in October 2017, Achraf Hakimi was loaned to Borussia Dortmund, one of the best German clubs (2018 -2020), then transferred to Inter Milan in July 2020 for 40 million euros. Despite a title of champion of Italy, the Moroccan international agreed to join Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG), who did not hesitate to pay 60 million euros excluding bonus (11 million euros) for to engage the services of the Lion of the Atlas. The very offensive profile of this right-back defender, also capable of playing in the middle, seduced the Parisian leaders. His first performances with PSG were conclusive.
Guinean Mohamed Bayo in Clermont-Ferrand
Few people knew Mohamed Bayo a year ago. The Guinean striker was returning from a loan in Dunkirk (National 1) and there was nothing to suggest that he would have an amazing 2020-2021 season with Clermont Foot, his training club. Top scorer in Ligue 2 with 22 goals (plus seven assists), the 23-year-old has greatly contributed to the historic accession of the Auvergne team to Ligue 1. Obviously, his performances have not left indifferent some more upscale clubs . Bordeaux and Lille would like to recruit him, but the Clermont leaders do not wish for the moment to transfer their offensive nugget. Mohamed Bayo will be one of the main assets of the Guinean team, the Syli National, at the next African Cup of Nations (CAN), in Cameroon in 2022.
Nigerian Terem Moffi in Lorient
In October 2020, the arrival in Ligue 1 of Nigerian striker Terem Moffi, 22, had gone almost unnoticed despite the size of the sum (8 million euros) paid by FC Lorient. Recruited in Kortrijk (Belgium) after a little more than two seasons in the anonymity of the Lithuanian championship, Terem Moffi was able to find the arguments to make himself known. The Breton club, which fought to the end to keep its place in Ligue 1, knows what it owes to its player, author of fifteen goals – some of which were decisive – against PSG and Bordeaux. Its market value is now over 10 million euros, but Lorient does not intend to part with one of the revelations of last season. His performances also opened the doors of the Nigerian selection in June, against Cameroon in friendly matches (0-1, 0-0).
Senegalese Ahmadou Dieng in Marseille
Ahmadou Dieng, 21, will undoubtedly be one of the players to watch this season. Olympique de Marseille (OM) believes in him and proved it by lifting the option to purchase this striker from the Senegalese club Diambars, known as one of the most formative in Africa. Seen on several occasions in Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France – a competition that allowed him to score his first goal on the hexagonal grounds, in February, against Auxerre -, Ahmadou Dieng will first seek to obtain playing time more consistent and continue to get tougher. The Argentine coach of OM, the bubbling Jorge Sampaoli, seems to appreciate this player who arrived very discreetly in Marseille, where he had first played with the B team (National 2) before gradually joining the professional group.
Algerian Hicham Boudaoui in Nice
Since his arrival in Nice in September 2019, Hicham Boudaoui, 21, has continued to assert himself as a good player in the French championship. His playing time, initially modest in his first season, has increased considerably in 2020-2021. The Algerian defensive midfielder, African champion with the Fennecs in Cairo two years ago, has matured and the new Nice coach, Christophe Galtier, French champion with Lille, appreciates him. He is one of the few players trained in Algeria to play in Europe, like his teammate Youcef Atal, who preceded him by a little over a year on the Côte d’Azur.