Ten Notable African Internationals To Represent The Foxes
The current Foxes squad includes several players to feature for African national teams, while some have emerged through the Club’s Academy to appear on the international stage too.
Following confirmation of Daka’s imminent arrival at King Power Stadium, LCFC.com reflects on some of the most celebrated stars of African international teams to wear Leicester’s colours over the years…
Ahmed Musa – The Club’s first-ever World Cup goalscorer
After netting 55 goals in 167 appearances for CSKA Moscow, Leicester paid a fee widely reported to be a Club record for Ahmed Musa, a Nigeria international with a big reputation in his homeland.
Musa made an instant impact on the Blue Army, scoring an impressive brace against Barcelona in the off-season International Champions Cup, before also featuring, from the bench, in the FA Community Shield against Manchester United at Wembley Stadium.
His first goal for the Foxes came in October 2016 as a move which began with the Nigerian, including touches from Islam Slimani and Shinji Okazaki, ended with Musa slamming the ball beyond Steve Mandanda in a 3-1 triumph over Crystal Palace at King Power Stadium.
His next strike came a week later. City fell behind against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane, to a Vincent Janssen penalty, but there was Musa to apply a simple finish to Jamie Vardy’s centre just after the interval to pick up a 1-1 draw in the capital.
In January 2017, meanwhile, in the FA Cup, the Jos-born forward hit a brace, including a nicely-worked second, to overturn Romelu Lukaku’s opener in a 2-1 win at Everton. A final Foxes goal, on the other hand, came in a 4-1 win at Sheffield United in the Carabao Cup.
Despite soon returning to CSKA on loan and eventually joining Al Nassr on a permanent basis, Musa wrote his name into Leicester City history in the summer of 2018.
His two efforts in a 2-0 group stage victory over Iceland saw him become the first LCFC goalscorer at a FIFA World Cup finals after starting alongside Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho.
Jeff Schlupp – From Belvoir Drive to full Ghana international
After joining Leicester City’s Academy as a boy, Jeff Schlupp – originally born in Hamburg, Germany – would go on to lift the Premier League title during his Foxes career.
As a teenager, he scored a stunning debut hat-trick as the Foxes came from behind to comfortably beat League 2 side Rotherham United in the League Cup in August 2011, shortly after returning from a successful loan spell at Brentford.
A maiden league goal, on the other hand, would follow in October as Sven-Göran Eriksson’s men completed a 4-0 rout of East Midlands neighbours Derby County on Filbert Way.
Hi 80th-minute effort in a 3-1 victory over Birmingham City, meanwhile, went down in the history books as the Club’s 4,000th home league goal. In total, his first season of senior football for Leicester would end with a return of six strikes in 26 games in all competitions.
Another 26 league appearances would follow in 2013/14 as the Foxes roared to the Championship title with a Club-record 102 points under Nigel Pearson's management and Schlupp would also feature prominently as City retained their Premier League status.
In the Club's greatest-ever season, Schlupp added his fourth top-flight goal in a 2-1 win at Norwich City and appeared on 24 occasions for Claudio Ranieri's title heroes, earning a Premier League winners’ medal and a place in Foxes folklore forever.
Over his time in the East Midlands, the young left wing-back scooped the Club's Academy Player of the Season in 2011, successive Young Player of the Season prizes in 2015 and 2016 and a Players' Player of the Season award in 2015.
He would eventually join Crystal Palace in 2017, but seven years earlier, Jeff made his debut on the international stage, after electing to represent Ghana, despite being born in Germany. Since then, Schlupp has earned 18 caps, scoring once for the Black Stars.
Yakubu – Nigeria’s third highest goalscorer
Foxes fans still, to this day, have fond memories of Yakubu’s brief stay in Leicester. A loan signing from Everton in 2011, there was much regret when the Nigerian moved on in the summer, to Blackburn Rovers, ahead of the 2011/12 campaign.
Half a year after starring and scoring at the World Cup in South Africa, Sven-Göran Eriksson persuaded 'The Yak' to join City over the winter months, hoping he could provide the goals to spark a last-gasp dash towards promotion to the Premier League.
While promotion ultimately didn’t come about, goals were a near certainty and, after netting against Preston North End and Millwall, Yakubu hit a sumptuous volley – after kneeing the ball up under his control – in a commanding 2-0 victory over Derby County at Pride Park.
A magnificent hat-trick against former side Middlesbrough came inside just 49 minutes at Riverside Stadium too, putting Leicester 3-1 up in the North East. A 90th minute equaliser from Stephen McManus for Boro, however, would deny Eriksson’s men all three points.
The goals kept on coming with a brace in a 4-2 triumph over Watford and solitary efforts against Doncaster Rovers and Ipswich Town, but much to the Foxes faithful's disappointment, Yakubu decided to join top-flight outfit Blackburn the following summer.
Internationally, Yakubu continued on for the Super Eagles, making the last of his 57 caps for Nigeria in 2012. His goal tally of 21 ranks third on the nation's all-time list.
Riyad Mahrez – The 2016 African Footballer of the Year
Signed from Le Havre for a reportedly nominal fee in 2014, few could have anticipated the remarkable rise of Riyad Mahrez at Leicester City over just two years.
The early signs were there as Riyad dazzled from the flanks in the Championship, netting a late equaliser at Nottingham Forest and then a fine effort against Blackpool.
He also struck on the day City ultimately sealed promotion back to the Premier League in a 2-1 triumph over Sheffield Wednesday, although the Blue Army would have to wait 24 hours for confirmation of their return to the top tier of English football.
Born in Sarcelles, France, to an Algerian father and a mother of Algerian and Moroccan descent, Mahrez opted to represent Algeria at international level in 2014.
Before making his Premier League debut, he’d also go on to feature at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil as the Desert Foxes navigated a tough group to face Germany in the Round of 16. The eventual champions, though, would emerge triumphant after extra-time in Fortaleza.
While Mahrez's chances were often limited in 2014/15, he nonetheless scored four Premier League goals, notably securing a 1-0 win at Hull City over the festive season. The following campaign, however, would come to transform Mahrez's career beyond recognition.
A tally of 17 Premier League strikes - breath-taking efforts against Chelsea and Manchester City among them - would define a magnificent season for Riyad and his Foxes team-mates as the Club lifted its first-ever top-flight title, despite odds of 5,000/1.
As well as taking home the African Footballer of the Year gong, Mahrez would scoop the BBC's equivalent too, as well as picking up a second successive Algerian Footballer of the Year prize and winning the hugely prestigious PFA Player of the Year award.
Later in 2016, he also came seventh in the Ballon d'Or’s list of best players in the world, while being named as Leicester City’s Player of the Season in 2015/16.
His extraordinary career has continued at Manchester City since 2018, winning two more Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three League Cups. He has 27 goals in 64 caps for Algeria and won the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 2019.
Daniel Amartey – A long serving international Fox
Signing for the Club in January 2016, Dan Amartey is one of the longest serving members of the current Leicester City squad. Since moving from FC Copenhagen, the versatile defender has made a total of 81 appearances in all competitions, including 17 during 2020/21.
But it was the 26-year-old's first half a season at the Club which would prove to be the most memorable to date, as Leicester won the Premier League title. The defender featured five times in 2015/16, with his debut coming in a 1-0 home win over Norwich City on 27 February, 2016.
In fact, Claudio Ranieri's side won in all of Amartey's first four appearances for the Club without conceding a goal and remained unbeaten in his fifth game - a 2-2 draw with West Ham United that edged the Foxes closer to the title.
The following season brought UEFA Champions League football to King Power Stadium for the first time and Amartey was a key part of the run to the quarter-finals, playing nine of Leicester's European fixtures, appearing in both legs of the historic last-16 triumph over Sevilla.
In the group stage, meanwhile, Leicester kept a clean sheet in each of the three games that Amartey started, with wins over Club Brugge - on his Champions League debut - and FC Porto followed by a stalemate with his former club, FC Copenhagen.
He also made 24 Premier League appearances, despite going away to the African Cup of Nations with Ghana during January. The 2016/17 campaign also brought his first Foxes goal, coming in the 88th minute to rescue a 2-2 draw with Stoke City in December 2016.
Although making fewer appearances in 2017/18, Amartey was nonetheless a starter in some key victories, such as the 2-0 League Cup success over Liverpool and holding Chelsea to a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.
Injuries may have limited his time on the pitch in recent years, but the defender was able to recover and finally make a long-awaited return to action in September 2020, after nearly two years out.
A maiden foray into the UEFA Europa League came last season, a competition Amartey had featured in during his time at Copenhagen, and he would help Leicester keep a shutout in the first leg of the Round of 32 tie against Slavia Prague.
Standing at 6ft 1ins, the Ghanian international is an imposing presence and used his abilities to great effect when scoring an 87th minute winner away at Brighton & Hove Albion in early March this year - his first in over four years.
Making his national team debut in 2012, Amartey now has 28 caps to his name, playing in two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for the Black Stars, and being named in the CAF Team of the Tournament in 2017.
Kelechi Iheanacho – City's Nigerian goal machine
Another member of the current squad, Kelechi Iheanacho has enjoyed four successful seasons with the Club since signing from Manchester City in August 2017, but there is no doubting that the Nigerian international's most fruitful campaign was 2020/21.
Making his debut in a 4-3 defeat to Arsenal, Iheanacho had his first Leicester goal two months later, in a League Cup clash against Leeds United.
Having already found the net for his country in a World Cup qualifying win over Cameroon, the striker was on the scoresheet in an international again when Nigeria beat Argentina in a November friendly. His international record reads nine goals in 33 appearances since making his first start in 2016.
Then came a run of four goals in two games for Leicester, during FA Cup wins over Fleetwood Town and Peterborough United.
Meanwhile, his first Premier League strike landed in March as the Foxes defeated West Bromwich Albion, and two more goals followed at the end of the season - against Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur - with his effort against the Gunners helping to record a 3-1 success at King Power Stadium.
After eight goals in all competitions during his maiden campaign, 2018/19 brought more game involvement for the 24-year-old, who made 35 City appearances, adding a further two goals to his club tally. Both came during early season victories as Fleetwood Town were defeated in the League Cup, and Huddersfield Town in the Premier League.
An even better start to the 2019/20 season followed, as Iheanacho hit the net in all of his first four games, including a last-minute winner at home to Everton. In fact, each fixture on that run ended in victory for Brendan Rodgers' men and Iheanacho's eye for an important goal came to the fore once more against West Ham United.
His opener contributed to a 2-1 win over the Hammers at the turn of the year, while three cup goals in January further cemented his value to the team. In all, he hit 10 goals in 26 appearances across all formats, reaching double figures in a Leicester shirt for the first time.
That set the forward up for a superb season, although before 22 October, his only goal of the campaign had come for his country. Goals soon started to flow and the Nigerian was influential in the Club's biggest-ever European victory - scoring twice in a 4-0 win over SC Braga, before snatching a late winner in the FA Cup Fifth Round, against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Thirteen goals in just 11 games between March and April further endeared ‘Seniorman Kelechi’ to the Blue Army, including his first Leicester hat-trick in a 5-0 victory over Sheffield United - equalling the Club’s biggest home Premier League win - and a brace as City knocked Manchester United out of the FA Cup, at the last eight stage.
Iheanacho's scoring exploits earned him the Premier League's Player of the Month award for March, ahead of netting the only goal of the game to send the Foxes to the FA Cup Final for the first time in 52 years, also starting the showpiece at Wembley as Leicester brought the cup home.
Max Gradel – An Ivorian promotion winner
In the youth set-up at the Club, Max Gradel signed his first professional contract at King Power Stadium in May 2007, after a loan spell with AFC Bournemouth and would play a key role in the title winning season of 2008/09.
His league bow for Leicester came against MK Dons in August, assisting one as Leicester won 2-0. The tricky winger's maiden goal, meanwhile, was scored in the FA Cup, versus Crystal Palace.
A month later, the Ivory Coast international's first league strike, a dramatic free-kick which was also against MK Dons, rescued a 2-2 draw in stoppage time, later winning the Club’s Goal of the Season award at the Supporters’ Club Awards.
Making a total of 32 appearances across all formats, Gradel helped Leicester to seal an immediate return to the Championship as third-tier champions.
Coming off the bench in the League Cup fixture with Macclesfield Town at the start of 2009/10, that victory proved to be his final appearance in a Leicester shirt, as he moved to Leeds United.
Following a successful loan stint with the Yorkshire club, Gradel moved to Elland Road on a permanent basis in January 2010 and is currently plying his trade in Turkey, playing for Sivasspor.
His international career, which began in 2011, has included 86 caps and 13 goals. His debut as a substitute against Benin ended in a 6-2 win, while his maiden start also came in victory, against Israel in August.
Playing in both the 2012 and 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, as well as the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Gradel has plenty of tournament experience. In the 2012 competition, Ivory Coast finished as runners-up, beaten in the final by Patson Daka’s nation, Zambia.
Wilfred Ndidi – The Nigerian enforcer
A midfielder by trade, Wilfred Ndidi is a key player in Brendan Rodgers’ current side, known primarily for his tackling and defensive abilities, and at 24 years of age, still has plenty of years at the top of his game ahead of him.
A January 2017 signing from Belgian side Genk, the Nigerian’s debut was in a 2-1 FA Cup win over Everton, making his first Premier League start a week later, against Chelsea.
His maiden Leicester goal booked City’s place in the next round of the FA Cup in February of that season, scored in extra-time of the clash with Derby County, and two more goals came in Premier League victories over Stoke City and Watford.
Soon joined at the Club by Kelechi Iheanacho, the Nigerian pair were both on the scoresheet in the 5-1 success at Peterborough United. Ndidi’s 2017/18 ended with three FIFA World Cup appearances, starting all three of Nigeria’s group games, helping the Super Eagles to victory over Iceland.
In October 2018, the defensive midfielder scored an 89th-minute equaliser to salvage a draw with West Ham United and netted his second Premier League goal of the season against Southampton.
Similarly in 2019/20, Ndidi scored twice - both in the league again - to equalise in a draw with Chelsea and during a 5-0 win over Newcastle United, which became the Club’s biggest home Premier League win.
Showing his versatility at the start of last season, Ndidi played in central defence, keeping a clean sheet as City booked a 3-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion.
Then in January 2021, Ndidi netted his only goal of the season in Leicester's 2-0 win against Chelsea, before helping the Foxes to win the Emirates FA Cup at Wembley for the very first time, beating the same opponent in the final.
Yohan Benalouane – Tunisian warrior
Tunisian defender Yohan Benalouane signed for Leicester in August 2015 and after nine appearances, four in the league, would spend the second half of the Premier League title-winning season on loan at Fiorentina.
Benalouane started both of the Foxes’ UEFA Champions League quarter-final legs against Atlético Madrid the next campaign, as City narrowly missed out on a semi-final place, along with 11 league appearances.
Internationally, the French-born centre-back chose to play for Tunisia and made his debut while at Leicester, at the end of 2017/18. Appearing in a friendly against Spain in June 2018, he also went to 2018 FIFA World Cup, facing Belgium in the group stage.
Former Leicester manager Martin O’Neill took Benalouane to Nottingham Forest in January 2019 and he now turns out for Super League Greece outfit Aris Thessaloniki.
Islam Slimani – Experienced Algerian international
Islam Slimani’s five seasons with Leicester involved 13 goals, three loan spells and UEFA Champions League football, while also adding to his tally of international caps, which now stands at 73. The former Fox boasts an impressive goal record for his country, netting 31 times in total.
A deadline day signing, Slimani moved from Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon for a reported Club-record fee in August 2016, joining the reigning Premier League champions and linking up with his fellow countryman, Riyad Mahrez.
The Champions League was where the striker made his Leicester bow, in a memorable 3-0 victory over Club Brugge, quickly followed by his league debut, against Burnley. And the Algerian scored a brace to help claim another 3-0 triumph.
More European success followed in late September as 'dragon slayer' Slimani scored the only goal to see off Porto, a familiar foe from his time at Sporting, before netting in back-to-back appearances in November.
The 33-year-old found the winner against West Ham United on the final day of 2016 and then headed off to the Africa Cup of Nations. Already an established international upon his arrival, Slimani played three games in the tournament, scoring once, and returned to net twice in five days in April.
Five goals during the first half of 2017/18 included one in the 2-0 League Cup win over Liverpool, before heading out to Newcastle United on loan, and further spells with Fenerbahçe and AS Monaco followed, before the forward's permanent transfer to Lyon.