Benni McCarthy, Sadio Mane, Mikel Obi Among African Players Who Have Won the Champions League

• Benni McCarthy was part of the FC Porto squad that won the UEFA Champions League title in 2004
• Three Nigerians, Finidi George, Kanu Nwankso and Mikel Obi, have also won the prestigious title
• Champions League action returns on Tuesday, and we look at the Africans who have won the title

Algerian international Riyad Mahrez is the latest African to win the UEFA Champions League, having claimed the title with Manchester City at the end of last season.

With the biggest competition in European football kicking off on Tuesday night, September 19, we look at the African players who have won the prestigious title.

In 1995, the Nigerian duo of Finidi George and Kanu Nwankwo played a crucial role as Ajax Amsterdam won the title that year.

Three African players were part of the Chelsea squad that won the European title in 2012, following their comeback victory over Bayern Munich, African Folder reports.

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South Africa’s Benni McCarthy also won the title with FC Porto in 2004 under Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho.

Below are African players who have won the Champions League title

1. Bruce Grobbelaar (Zimbabwe) – Liverpool (1983/84)
2. Rabah Madjer (Algeria) – FC Porto (1986/87)
3. Abedi Pele (Ghana) – Olympique de Marseille (1992/93)
4. Finidi George and Nwankwo Kanu (Nigeria) – Ajax Amsterdam (1994/95)
5. Ibrahim Tanko (Ghana) – Borussia Dortmund (1996/97)
6. Geremi (Cameroon) and Samuel Kuffour (Ghana) – Real Madrid and Bayern Munich (1999/00 and 2000/01)
7. Benni McCarthy (South Africa) – FC Porto (2003/04)
8. Djimi Traoré (Mali) – Liverpool (2004/05)
9. Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon) – FC Barcelona and Inter Milan (2005/06, 2008/09, 2009/10)
10. Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast) and Seydou Keita (Mali) – FC Barcelona (2008/09)
11. Sulley Muntari (Ghana) and McDonald Mariga (Kenya) – Inter Milan (2009/10)
12. John Obi Mikel (Nigeria), Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast), and Michael Essien (Ghana) – Chelsea (2011/12)
13. Achraf Hakimi (Morocco) – Real Madrid (2017/18)
14. Mohamed Salah (Egypt), Sadio Mané (Senegal), Joel Matip (Cameroon), and Naby Keita (Guinea) – Liverpool (2018/19)
15. Edouard Mendy (Senegal) and Hakim Ziyech (Morocco) – Chelsea (2020/21)
16. Riyad Mahrez (Algeria) – Manchester City (2022/23)

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PSG set for Champions League title quest

Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain have undergone sweeping changes over the summer ahead of their latest bid for Champions League glory.

The Parisians host Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday in their first match in a heavyweight Champions League group which also features AC Milan and Newcastle United.

The French title-holders have endured one frustration after another in the competition in recent years, with a defeat by Bayern Munich last season seeing them go out of the Champions League in the last 16 for the fifth time in seven years.

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However, before any club can dare to dream of making it to next year's final at Wembley Stadium, they must first navigate the challenging group stage hurdle.