African players in Europe: Bafana’s Lyle Foster scores again in the Premier League

Burnley's South African striker Lyle Foster celebrates after scoring his team first goal during their Premier League football match against Tottenham Hotspur at Turf Moor on Saturday. Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP

Burnley's South African striker Lyle Foster celebrates after scoring his team first goal during their Premier League football match against Tottenham Hotspur at Turf Moor on Saturday. Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP

Published Sep 4, 2023

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Bafana Bafana striker Lyle Foster opened the scoring in Burnley’s Premier League loss to Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, while Mohamed Salah put talk of a reported £150 million ($189 mn) move to Saudi side Al-Ittihad behind him with the final Liverpool goal in a 3-0 win over Aston Villa.

Reds manager Jurgen Klopp is confident the Egyptian star will remain at Anfield, saying "he is our player and wants to play here".

Here, we highlight African headline-makers in the major European leagues:

ENGLAND

Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)

The Reds were already two goals ahead at Anfield, when Salah struck in the 55th minute. Villa failed to deal with a corner and Salah turned in Darwin Nunez's flick-on at the back post.

Abdoulaye Doucoure (Everton)

The Mali midfielder opened the scoring as Everton gained their first point of the season in a 2-2 draw at Sheffield United. Doucoure netted in the 14th minute when, following James Tarkowski's knock-down from a corner, he scored after his initial shot was parried by Wes Foderingham.

Bryan Mbeumo (Brentford)

France-born Cameroon international Mbeumo equalised in the 90th minute to snatch a 2-2 draw for Brentford at home against Bournemouth. After missing a great chance to score just after the break, he made amends with a smart turn and shot.

Lyle Foster (Burnley)

The South African got promoted Burnley off to a great start against Tottenham Hotspur with a fourth-minute goal, but the lead did not last long and Spurs coasted to a 5-2 victory. Last weekend, Foster became the first South African scorer in the Premier League since 2013.

ITALY

Zito Luvumbo (Cagliari)

The Angolan opened the scoring midway through the first half at Bologna, but hopes of a first Serie A win this season for Cagliari were dashed as they conceded an 89th-minute goal to lose 2-1. Luvumbo is back at Cagliari after a loan spell with second-tier Como.

GERMANY

Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen)

Boniface continued the blistering start to his Bundesliga career, scoring a double for the second consecutive game as Leverkusen thumped Darmstadt 5-1. The Nigerian has four goals and two assists since moving from Belgian club Union Saint-Gilloise in mid-year.

Serhou Guirassy (Stuttgart)

The Guinea international scored twice in three minutes as Stuttgart crushed Bochum 5-0 for a second five-goal trumph in three games. Guirassy has five goals in three games this season and tops the Bundesliga scoring charts.

FRANCE

Wilfried Singo (Monaco)

The 22-year-old Ivory Coast defender has come straight into the Monaco side since signing from Torino last month. He scored his first goal for his new club, grabbing the opener in a 3-0 win over Lens which sent Monaco clear at the top of Ligue 1.

Oumar Diakite (Reims)

Diakite scored the goal of the weekend in France with his side's first as Reims drew 2-2 at Metz. It was a first in Ligue 1 for the 19-year-old Ivorian striker since he joined Reims in June in a reported €3.5 million ($3.8 mn) deal from Red Bull Salzburg.

Ablie Jallow (Metz)

Metz escaped with a draw against Reims thanks to a fine second-half strike by Ablie Jallow. The 24-year-old Gambian international had just come off the bench to make his first Ligue 1 appearance in over six years. The goal was his first in France's top division.

AFP