Africa’s biggest stars have returned to club duties after the delight and heartbreak of African World Cup qualifiers, the return to domestic action bringing a positive change of fortunes for some while others were brought crashing back down to earth.
Kelechi Iheanacho will be one of the most high-profile African players to miss the World Cup, after Nigeria were undone by Ghana during their playoff in Abuja, but the Super Eagles forward showed little residual effect from that major disappointment as he set up Leicester City for a draw — and heaped further woe on Manchester United’s interim boss, Ralf Rangnick — by opening the scoring at Old Trafford.
Iheanacho scored in the 63rd minute when he capitalised on Raphael Varane‘s misjudgement and headed James Maddison‘s cross beyond David de Gea to give Leicester the lead in a balanced contest. It was a collector’s item from the 25-year-old, who hadn’t previously scored a headed goal this season.
He later nicked the ball from Varane and played in Maddison — with whom he’s enjoying a blossoming partnership — only for the latter’s goal to be ruled out after the VAR officials decided the Nigerian had blocked the France centre-back illegally in the build-up to the goal.
The ex-Manchester City forward was alive and alert throughout the contest, causing persistent problems for the underwhelming Varane and Harry Maguire, but this wasn’t a flawless display. He missed a great chance late on, and several Foxes attacks fell down at his feet when he either chose the wrong pass or was guilty of poor ball control, but the attacker’s touches and invention early on should be encouraging for Brendan Rodgers.
Iheanacho’s header was only his seventh goal for Leicester this season — and his third in the Premier League — although Maddison’s excellent delivery and growing confidence should give the striker plenty of opportunity to add to his tally before the end of the campaign with Jamie Vardy still being assessed after his knee injury.
“Great performance from the team, [we] nearly won it,” Iheanacho wrote on his Instagram handle after the match. “Let’s go for more. Thanks to our fans for their support.”
Ghana may have been the beneficiaries of Nigeria’s failure in Abuja, but Thomas Partey, who excelled for the Black Stars during the international break, was brought back to reality with a bump on Monday evening.
The midfield powerhouse endured a night to forget as he limped off with an apparent thigh injury while Arsenal were trounced 3-0 in a London derby at Crystal Palace.
Having seen their nearest rivals for a top-four berth — Tottenham Hotspur — eviscerate Newcastle United 5-1 on Sunday, the Gunners found themselves under pressure to maintain the initiative in the race for UEFA Champions League positions when they travelled to Selhurst Park in the final match of the weekend.
The 28-year-old lasted just 74 minutes of the encounter — picking up a booking in the process — before being replaced in some discomfort by Albert Sambia Lokonga.
“I don’t know, but he felt something in the same area that he got injured previously so that’s a big concern,” Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta said when asked after the match about Partey’s injury.
It would certainly be a big setback for the Gunners were Partey to miss some or all of the run-in, with the ex-Atletico Madrid man having come into his own in recent months, finally demonstrating on a consistent basis the form that prompted Arsenal to part with £45 million to take him to London.
There was joy for Palace’s African players, with Partey’s compatriots Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp, as well as Ivory Coast wideman Wilfried Zaha, all excelling in an outstanding performance for the Eagles.
Ayew scored the hosts’ second goal, capitalising on sloppy defending by Nuno Tavares before bursting into space and finishing calmly with a left-footed effort beyond Aaron Ramsdale.
This was just his Ayew’s second goal of the season although it was his fourth all time against Arsenal, who clearly struggle to deal with the 30-year-old.
Schlupp was a lively presence for the Eagles, drawing one foul from Partey after a sublime dribble through the Arsenal midfield, while Zaha added the coup de grace from the spot after being brought down by Martin Odegaard.
Zaha, clearly raising his game for the contest against a side that once courted him, has now won 18 top-flight penalties during his career; only Raheem Sterling (23) and Vardy (21) have more.
Edouard Mendy was another on the winning side during the World Cup playoffs, playing his part in Senegal’s penalty shootout victory over Egypt as the African champions booked their ticket to Qatars on Tuesday, but the Teranga Lions stopper endured a disastrous afternoon as Chelsea were humbled 4-1 at home by lowly West London rivals Brentford.
It was perhaps the Blues’ worst performance since the 5-2 defeat by West Bromwich Albion in April 2021 — another outing to forget for Mendy — and the keeper was arguably at fault for Christian Eriksen‘s goal as he was sluggish coming off his line to close down the returning playmaker.
“I think it is an unthankful game for a goalkeeper,” Thomas Tuchel said after the match.
“[Mendy] has a lot to process.
“That’s why he goes and plays these tight matches — a rematch of the African Cup final to qualify for the Qatar World Cup, he does another penalty shootout and he can feel it.
“He is part of the team and unfortunately he couldn’t help us like he did in the first match [against Brentford this season].”
Mendy will at least have the chance to bounce back quickly when Chelsea take on Real Madrid in their Champions League quarterfinal first leg on Wednesday.
Yoane Wissa was on the losing side during the qualifiers, as Congo DR were eliminated by Morocco, but he played his part in Brentford’s unforgettable triumph.
The forward needed just 120 seconds to score after coming off the bench — his eighth goal of an impressive first season in the Premier League.
In Spain, Morocco’s Yassine Bono recovered from the concussion he suffered in the Atlas Lions’ qualifying victory over DRC to deliver a heroic display in Sevilla’s 1-0 defeat by Barcelona.
The North African was on the losing side, but only after making five saves — including ending Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang‘s three-game scoring streak with a decent block.
Pedri’s magnificent finish proved too much for the North African as Barcelona moved up to second.
In Germany, Taiwo Awoniyi maintained his magnificent form and wrote his name into the history books in the Bundesliga.
Awoniyi wasn’t named in Nigeria’s squad for their Ghana showdown, but his goal for Union Berlin against FC Cologne was his 12th of the Bundesliga season — and with it he became the club’s leading scorer in a single campaign and all-time leading scorer in the German top flight.
Only five players have scored more goals than Awoniyi in the league this season, which makes it even more remarkable that the Super Eagles opted to drop him from their squad for the double-header against their fierce West African rivals.
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