Micah Richards and Alan Shearer rank the top 10 African players in Premier League history

The 10 greatest African footballers have been ranked by the Match of the Day panel in their latest instalment of the top 10 series.

MOTD top 10 became quite the revelation when it was introduced way back in lockdown and the series led by Gary Linekar, with the help of Alan Shearer and Micah Richards, has gone from strength to strength since then.

In the most recent episode released via BBC Sounds on April 11th, the panel (Shearer and Richards) discuss their lists of the top 10 African footballers in Premier League history.

And let us say this… it’s pretty controversial this time.

Check out both of their top 10s below:

#10: Jay-Jay Okocha

#9: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

#8: Emmanuel Adebayor

#7: Nwankwo Kanu

#6: Michael Essien

#5: Riyad Mahrez

#4: Yaya Toure

#3: Sadio Mane

#2: Mohamed Salah

#1: Dider Drogba

#10: Nwankwo Kanu

#9: Emmanuel Adebayor

#8: Jay-Jay Okocha

#7: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

#6: Michael Essien

#5: Riyad Mahrez

#4: Sadio Mane

#3: Yaya Toure

#2: Didier Drogba

#1: Mohamed Salah

Before we get to the obvious debate here, let’s first start lower down. Jay-Jay Okocha in at number 10 for Shearer? The man was so good they named him twice, so to have Kanu in above him we think is rather questionable.

Although, Kanu even surpasses Aubameyang in Shearer’s opinion. The Nigerian international notched 54 goals in 273 Premier League appearances, a goal ratio which pales in comparison to Aubameyang’s record of 68 goals in 128 games.

Interestingly, Essien fails to break into the top five for either pundit. The iconic Ghanaian enforcer was a mainstay in the heart of Chelsea’s midfield for an impressive nine seasons, winning two Premier League titles, but the panel instead opted for Manchester City star Mahrez.