Essien, Njitap and Top 5 African Players Who Played for Real Madrid

• Real Madrid is known for its knack for securing high profile players
• Madrid's long affiliation with South American and European stars has given little rooms for African players
• Here are the top five African stars who were able to don the famous white shirt

Real Madrid are probably the biggest name in club football and are the prime draw for superstars from around the world.

The Spanish powerhouse is renowned for its great history and standards of success, winning the UEFA Champions League 14 times.

Over the years, Los Blancos have developed a reputation for luring the greatest and most talented players to the Santiago Bernabeu.

Great African footballers have also displayed their talent while wearing Madrid's fabled all-white uniform, GOAL reported.

Meet the top 4 African stars who played for Eintracht Frankfurt

Football

Sports Brief takes a look at the top 5 African players who played for Real Madrid.

Emmanuel Adebayor

The second half of the 2010–2011 campaign saw the legendary Togolese forward on loan at Real Madrid, according to the Guardian.

Adebayor played in 22 games in which he scored eight goals, five of them came in La Liga, for Los Blancos

He scored three goals against Almeria in a La Liga encounter on May 21, 2011, during his brief stint at the Bernabeu. He had won the Copa del Rey by the time the season was over.

Geremi Njitap

Unquestionably, the two-time African Cup of Nations champion ranks among the finest African players to don the illustrious Real Madrid jersey. Between 1999 and 2002, Geremi spent three seasons at the Bernabeu, where he was quite successful.

The Cameroon legend was a member of the La Liga champions in the 2000–2001 season. Additionally, he was a member of the squad that won the UEFA Champions League in the 1999–2000 and 2001–2002 seasons.

FC Porto legends: Top 10 all-time greats for the Dragons

Football

Mahamadou Diarra

Between 2006 and 2011, Diarra spent 5 seasons playing for Madrid.

The former Mali international was well-known for his dependable presence in the middle of the field, where he shielded his defense and served as a physical fortress that allowed his more creative teammates to attack.

In 128 appearances across all leagues for Real, Mahamadou scored four goals. The former captain of Mali earned numerous honours while playing with Los Blancos, including two consecutive La Liga championships (2006–2007, 2007–2008) and a Copa del Rey crown in the 2010–2011 campaign.

Michael Essien

The former Ghanaian midfield enforcer had a brief spell on loan with Madrid during the 2012-2013 season, where he reunited with his former Chelsea FC manager Jose Mourinho.

Essien featured 21 times in the Spanish La Liga, scoring just twice.

Achraf Hakimi

Due to a lack of opportunity, the Moroccan right wingback's time at Madrid was quite brief. Nevertheless, Hakimi was still able to play in a few games throughout the 2017–2018 campaign, during which he made a total of 17 appearances and scored two goals.

Sporting Lisbon legends: Top 10 all-time greats for the Leões

Football

Hakimi was a member of the Madrid roster that won the UEFA Champions League in 2018, so at least he was able to end his tenure at Real with a trophy.

Ancelotti apologises to Real Madrid fans

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Real Madrid saw any hope of them retaining their La Liga title disappear after they were embarrassingly thrashed 4-2 by Girona on Tuesday night.

Despite having 72% possession, Los Blancos, who had not conceded a goal in La Liga in their previous six games, were outplayed by the Catalans and created far fewer chances than the hosts.

Carlo Ancelotti has now apologised to the Real Madrid fans following the embarrassing defeat. He has vowed that the team will bounce back in its remaining competitions.