Top 5 Kenyan players to have played in Europe

Recognized globally as a nation where some of the very best athletes in long-distance running (like Eliud Kipchoge) are born, Kenya's footballing prowess is little known outside Eastern Africa.

Very few out in the world would be aware of the fact that the Harambee Stars, as the Kenyan National Football Team is colloquially called, are the current holders of the CECEFA Senior Challenge Cup - the oldest football tournament in all of Africa, comprising of national teams from the East African region.

The Kenyans have won the regional tournament seven times and have seven runners-up medals in addition to that.

Though the team is yet to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, they have featured six times in the CAF African Cup of Nations. The country currently is heavily investing in football with the hopes of securing a World Cup finals berth.

Despite failing to qualify for major tournaments, Kenya has produced some fine footballers in the recent past, most of them plying their trade in the Kenyan Premier League, the South Africa Premier Division, and the Zambia Super League. However, there are a few footballers from the country who have made it big and got the chance to show their skills in Europe.

Here is a look at the top five Kenyan footballers to have played in European leagues:

#5 Mike Okoth Origi

Mike Okoth Origi

Regarded as one of the greatest strikers Kenya has ever produced, he spent most of his footballing career in Belgium, turning out for as many as six different league clubs before hanging up his boots in 2006.

He represented the Kenyan National team in three editions (1990, 1992, and 2004) of the African Cup of Nations. Origi is the most capped Kenyan footballer in history, finishing his career with an astonishing 120 appearances for the national side.

During his time in Belgium, he played for KV Oostende, KRC Harelbeke, Genk, Molenbeek, Heusden-Zolder, and Tongeren. With Genk, he played 81 matches across four seasons scoring 20 goals in the process, winning the domestic league twice and the Belgian Cup once before departing for rivals Molenbeek.

#4 Dennis Oliech

Dennis Oliech playing in the UEFA Champions League for AJ Auxurre

Dennis Oliech is the all-time record goalscorer for the Kenyan national team with 34 goals to his name. His goal scoring exploits as a youngster for Mathare United earned him a move to Qatar side Al-Arabi in 2003. After spending two years in the Qatar Star League, where he got to rub shoulders with greats like Stefan Effenberg and Gabriel Batistuta, he was snapped up by French Ligue 1 side Nantes where he could manage only four goals in 32 matches.

He later joined AJ Auxerre, playing for the club for a good six years and netting in 25 goals in 125 appearances, before joining Ajaccio.

After ten years of playing in France, Oliech moved on to the United Arab Emirates to join Dubai CSC for a short stint before hanging up his boots in 2016.

#3 Michael Olunga Ogada

Michael Olunga made history as the first Kenyan to score a hat-trick in La Liga

Michael Olunga was likened to legendary Harambee Stars striker Mike Origi during his developmental years. After making a name for himself in the Kenyan Premier League, he secured a move to Swedish side Djurgårdens IF in 2015.

In his first season on foreign soil, he scored 12 goals in 27 appearances, and moved on eastward the following year, joining Chinese club Guizhou Zhicheng and scoring two goals in nine appearances, but was later loaned to La Liga side Girona, which is where he spent the most successful years of footballing career yet.

Making his league debut for the Spanish club, he netted a hat-trick in a span of 22 minutes, thus becoming the first Kenyan player and the first man in his club's history to score a hat-trick in La Liga.

The 25-year-old currently plays for Japanese side Kashiwa Reysol.

#2 Victor Mugubi Wanyama

Colchester United v Tottenham Hotspur - Carabao Cup Third Round

Victor Wanyama is a defensive midfielder who plays for English side Tottenham Hotspur. He made a name for himself while playing for Scottish giants Celtic, where he won two Scottish Premier League titles and Scottish Cup.

His performance at the club earned him the Scottish Premier League Young Player of the Year award for the 2012-13 season and he was also named in the Scottish Premier League Team of the Year for the season.

His goal for Celtic against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League made him the first Kenyan to score in the competition.

In 2013, Wanyama secured a career-defining transfer to English Premier League side Southampton, becoming the first Kenyan to play in the English top flight.

He was then bought by Tottenham Hotspur in 2015 and since then, has established himself a vital player for the club. Wanyama was a part of the Spurs team that finished runners-up in the Champions League last season.

#1 MacDonald Mariga

MacDonald Mariga won the treble at Inter Milan

MacDonald Mariga is arguably the most decorated Kenyan footballer in history. During his playing career, he played for clubs in Italy, Spain, and Sweden. After starting his career in Kenya, he switched to Swedish side Enkopings SK and a year later, joined Helsingborgs IF.

In Italy, he played for Inter Milan, Parma, and Latina while in Spain, he played for Real Sociedad and Real Oviedo.

The Nairobi-born defensive midfielder became the first Kenyan to play in the UEFA Champions League in 2010, while still with Italian giants Inter. Later that year, Mariga became the first Kenyan to win the UEFA Champions League when the club, under Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho, got the better of Bayern Munich in the finals.

It was a historic year for Mariga as Milan also won the Serie A and the Copa Italia titles, completing the famed treble and becoming the first Italian club to achieve that feat.