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The continent of Europe is famous for producing footballing stars every year with South America a close second. However, the continent of Africa has also regularly produced some exceptional players, many a time from unknown countries.
Although the African national teams fail to really stamp their authority on the world stage, players like Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure, Michael Essien, Emmanuel Adebayor, etc. have shown that the continent is not bereft of world-class talent.
Imagine a scenario where a World Cup-like competition is held, where teams representing their continents will compete for a cup. Though teams like Ghana, Cameroon, and Senegal are the only ones from Africa to make it to the quarterfinals of a World Cup, a team made up of the best players from the continent would surely give any other team a run for their money.
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The list will look at the African players currently playing in any league in the world. Moreover, this list will be based on the overall current ability of the players and their relevance today and not their current form or past achievements.
The list also does not just intend to make up a team of XI individually best players but to analyze who would fit the best in the system and complement each other. The formation used is 4-3-3.
So let's get started.
Andre Onana (Cameroon)
The Cameroonian international was a part of Barcelona's La Masia academy. In 2015, he moved to Ajax and made over 120 appearances for the Dutch giants. He has established himself as the first choice goalkeeper for Ajax. He keeps out Fenerbahce's Idriss Carlos Kameni and Lille's Vincent Enyeama from wearing the No.1 jersey in this team.
Most recently, he was the guardian for the Ajax side that defeated and knocked out Real Madrid from the Champions League over two legs. He is athletic, has a good positioning sense and is assured when the oppostion launches a ball into his box.
To be fair, there is a dearth of really exceptional talent between the sticks to rival Onana and thus this is one of the easiest choices in the XI. Having said that Onana is a talented young goalkeeper, with a bright future.
Faouzi Ghoulam (Algeria)
Ghoulam is one of the best left-backs in the world. He is a hardworking defender, is quick and can deliver a really sweet left-footed ball into the box. Even though he has been plagued by injuries lately, he can be described as world class when in full flow and has 35 caps for Algeria.
He performed exceedingly well in a Napoli side that missed out from qualifying for the Champions League knockout stage by a whisker. He has racked up 166 appearances for Napoli, assisting 27 goals. His inclusion is one of the easiest decisions in this list.
Achraf Hakimi (Morocco)
Hakimi is just 20 years old but registered 17 appearances for Real Madrid in the 2017/18 season. This season, the Moroccan youngster has garnered 28 appearances (at the time of writing) for a high flying Borussia Dortmund side and 18 appearances for the Moroccan National team.
He is rivaled for the right-back spot by the Ivorian, Serge Aurier. Aurier has won 2 titles with Paris Saint Germain and now competes for a starting berth with Kieran Trippier at Tottenham Hotspurs.
However, Hakimi is better on the ball and is measured in his defending. Hakimi also provides extra flexibility with his ability to play at left-back. Thus I feel that at their best, Hakimi just edges out Aurier.
Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal)
The Napoli man is one of the best defenders in the world, and many top clubs in Europe are looking to add him to their backline. The 27-year old has gone from strength to strength in the last 5 years. He is a colossus at the back with brilliant positioning and tackling. He is also unbelievably quick for a man of his size, quite similar to Virgil van Dijk.
He provides solidity to any backline he plays in and is the kind of player that others rely on to rectify or cover up for their mistakes. He has 31 caps for Senegal and has been named the Senegalese player of the year, twice.
Joel Matip (Cameroon)
There are a few options available to partner Koulibaly in the centre of defence. The best being Mehdi Benatia or Eric Bailly. However, even though Matip is not a star defender in the Premier League like a van Dijk or John Stones, he has a terrific ball playing ability and can launch pinpoint balls to the forwards.
He might make an error sometimes but at his best, he can keep most forwards quiet. He has formed a solid partnership with van Dijk in the absence of Joe Gomez and has kept out Liverpool's originally assigned third choice centre-back, Dejan Lovren.
Most recently, the Cameroonian was vital in keeping one of the best forwards in the world, Robert Lewandowski, quiet for a full 90 minutes in Liverpool's match against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Thus with the brute strength and pace of Koulibaly and the passing ability of Matip, the central defence is well rounded.
Franck Kessie (Cote d'Ivoire)
The 22-year old Ivorian has been capped 27 times by his nation. He is a hardworking and versatile midfielder who can play as a defensive midfielder in front of the defence or as a more attacking midfielder. He has good passing ability which is showcased by an overall pass success rate of 88.5%. He is a tireless player who can hit the target from a long range and is difficult to push off the ball.
Even at such a young age, he had made 87 appearances for AC Milan, scoring 9 goals and assisting another 8. He is one of the mainstays of the AC Milan midfield.
He will sit in the midfield three, allowing the other two to play a box-to-box role.
Thomas Partey (Ghana)
Thomas Partey is an irreplaceable member of one of the best clubs in Europe, Atletico Madrid. He has made 132 appearances for Atleti and has 20 caps for Ghana. He is equally capable of acting as a shield in front of the defence or as a box-to-box midfielder.
He is an absolute engine, who can run for days. He also has decent speed and acceleration enabling him to join the attack or track back when required. Another advantage of Partey is his ability to as a right-sided wide midfielder or as a Right-back.
He definitely beats all his competitors to take the right-sided central midfielder's role. However, depending on the requirement of the game and the opponent, Partey can switch roles with Kessie or form a two man holding midfield, changing the formation to 4-2-3-1.
Naby Keita (Guinea)
Naby Keita is an explosive midfielder who has unbelievable ball control and dribbling ability in tight situations. He has the ability to pick the ball up in midfield and drive into the opposition box. He has the kind of flair that can light up a game for his side. Keita can also deputize as a holding midfielder, central attacking midfielder or as a left or right winger. He scored 17 goals and contributed 15 assists in 71 appearances for RB Leipzig.
He may not have yet settled into life at Liverpool and is not one of the first names on the team sheet, but his ability on the football field has very few doubters.
Right Wing - Mohamed Salah (Egypt)
The frontline of this Africa XI is the one that boasts of maximum talent; Riyad Mahrez, Wilfred Zaha to name a few.
On the right wing, we have the Egyptian King Mohamed Salah. He was other-worldly last season but is having a not-so-good second half of this season. He still has 20 goals and 9 assists from 42 matches; if that is a bad season, what is good?
He is a blazing winger, blessed with pace, exceptional ball control and impeccable footballing brain. He loves to pick up the ball and run at defenders, usually turning them inside out. The two time African Footballer of the Year has 39 goals in 62 caps for Egypt.
Left Wing - Sadio Mane (Senegal)
Sadio Mane has been Liverpool's most influential attacking player this season and has had a good season for Senegal as well. He is a pacey winger who can leave defenders on the floor at will. He has the ability to consistently beat his marker, get to the byline and put in dangerous crosses.
Adding to this, his goal output is massive for a wide man. The Senegal captain has 60 caps for his national side scoring 16 goals and assisting another 13. He also has 53 goals in 112 appearances for Liverpool. He has been Liverpool's main man this season and recently turned around the game for Senegal against Mali.
Striker - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon)
The Gabon international is the only one from his country on this list. However, his ability and his numbers keep him poles apart from any other African striker. He is tall, has blistering pace and is a ruthless finisher. Aubameyang made himself known to the footballing community with his performances at Saint-Etienne. He then joined Borussia Dortmund and set the stage alight, earning a move to Arsenal. He made 213 appearances for Dortmund, scoring 141 goals and assisting 36. Since joining Arsenal, he has scored 32 goals and assisted 11 in 54 appearances.
Even though he plays for a country that is not considered as one of the big boys in the African continent, let alone the world, Aubameyang still has scored 20 goals in 51 caps.
With Salah, Mane and Aubameyang leading the attack, the African XI will boast of one of the best attacking trios in the world.
