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Africans Abroad: Coulibaly, Belloumi, and Zabiri at the double in Europe

Africans Abroad: Coulibaly, Belloumi, and Zabiri at the double in Europe
Africans Abroad: Coulibaly, Belloumi, and Zabiri at the double in Europe Emmanuele Mastrodonato/IPA Sport / IPA / Profimedia

Awe-inspiring performances from African players played a pivotal role in securing crucial results for their respective clubs.

England

Malick Yalcouye scored as Brighton and Hove Albion thrashed Coventry City 5-0, while Taiwo Awoniyi was sent off for the newly promoted English top-flight side.

The Seagulls took control early and eventually broke the deadlock through Charalampos Kostoulas, who found the bottom corner before half-time.

Yalcouye then doubled Brighton’s advantage 10 minutes after the restart. The Ivorian midfielder reacted quickly to win a loose ball ahead of Aurele Amenda, raced through on goal and calmly finished at the near post.

Coventry’s hopes of a comeback suffered another blow moments later when Nigeria international Awoniyi was shown a straight red card for elbowing Maxim De Cuyper off the ball.

Pascal Grob added a penalty before Lewis Dunk and Yasin Ayari completed the rout, leaving Frank Lampard’s men without a goal after four league games.

At Stamford Bridge, Mohamed Belloumi scored twice as Hull City came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw against Chelsea.

The Blues took the lead in the seventh minute when Morgan Rogers beat Konstantinos Tzolakis with a powerful effort.

Hull responded before the half-hour mark, with Belloumi guiding Ryan Giles’ cross beyond goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez to level the game.

The Algerian forward struck again six minutes later, firing a deflected effort into the net after Semi Ajayi’s header hit the crossbar.

Hosts Chelsea pushed for a response after the break and eventually equalised through Joao Pedro in the 66th minute.

Mohamed Belloumi
Mohamed BelloumiČTK / imago sportfotodienst / Daniel Hambury

Italy

Akor Adams scored his first Serie A goal as Venezia suffered a 4-2 home defeat to Fiorentina.

The Nigerian striker opened the scoring midway through the first half after Gianluca Busio found him inside the area.

Adams produced a powerful first-time right-footed finish into the far corner to register his maiden goal in Italy’s top flight.

However, Venezia’s lead did not last long as Franco Mastantuono scored twice before half-time to put the visitors ahead.

Mateo Pellegrino added a third after the break before Mastantuono completed his hat-trick.

Antoine Hainaut pulled one back late on, but Fiorentina held on to secure their first Serie A points of the season.

Elsewhere, Paul Mendy was on target as Cagliari secured a 2-1 victory away to Atalanta.

The visitors started strongly and took the lead in the 19th minute when Michel Adopo raced behind the defence before cutting the ball back for Senegal’s Mendy.

The forward finished first time, with his effort hitting the underside of the crossbar before crossing the line.

Atalanta equalised shortly before half-time through Gianluca Scamacca, but Cagliari restored their lead after the break when Daniel Maldini converted a penalty.

Mendy thought he had scored again, but his second-half effort was ruled out for offside after a VAR review.

In another Serie A fixture, Lassana Coulibaly bagged a brace as Lecce secured a 3-2 victory over Monza.

The Malian opened the scoring after just three minutes, rising highest at the back post to head home from an Ivan Ilic corner.

Lecce doubled their advantage seven minutes later through Tiago Gabriel, but Monza quickly responded when Ricardo Mangas scored from close range.

Coulibaly restored Lecce’s two-goal lead less than 90 seconds later, steering the ball into the near corner after Monza failed to clear a long throw.

Monza pulled another goal back through Exequiel Zeballos in the 89th minute, but the visitors held on for victory.

Maduka Okoye conceded five goals as Inter Milan came from two goals down to beat Udinese 5-3 at San Siro.

The Nigerian goalkeeper made an excellent double save to deny Marcus Thuram early on as the White and Blacks took a 2-0 lead through James Abankwah and Jurgen Ekkelenkamp.

However, the hosts fought back before half-time, with Carlos Augusto and Nicolo Barella scoring to level the game.

Thuram then put Inter ahead after the break before Pio Esposito and Ange-Yoan Bonny added further goals.

Okoye made several important saves but could not prevent Inter from scoring five times.

Maduka Okoye
Maduka OkoyeLuca Rossini/IPA Sport / IPA / Profimedia

Germany

Cameroon forward Christian Kofane scored for Bayer Leverkusen in their 2-2 draw by Augsburg.

Kofane opened the scoring early after collecting Edmond Tapsoba’s long ball before calmly placing his finish beyond goalkeeper Finn Dahmen.

Leverkusen dominated the first half and created several chances but could not add to their lead.

Augsburg turned the game around after the break, with Michael Gregoritsch scoring twice in quick succession to put the hosts ahead.

Leverkusen pushed for an equaliser, and Patrik Schick eventually rescued a point in the closing stages.

The draw moved Leverkusen up to seventh, while Augsburg remained unbeaten at home.

Algerian star Adil Aouchiche propelled Schalke to their first Bundesliga victory since the 2022/23 season with a 3-1 win over Union Berlin.

Robin Gosens opened the scoring for the Royal Blues in the 24th minute, before Aouchiche doubled their advantage shortly after half-time.

The French midfielder exchanged passes with Junior Adamu before firing past Frederik Rønnow. The goal was initially ruled out for offside but was awarded after a VAR review.

Union dominated possession but struggled to break Schalke down, with Tim Skarke scoring a late consolation.

Maximilian Wober then sealed Schalke’s victory in stoppage time, moving them up to seventh in the table.

Spain

Yassir Zabiri scored twice as Racing Santander came from behind to beat Deportivo Alaves 2-1 at El Sardinero.

The visitors took the lead in the 18th minute when Ville Koski followed up to score after Julen Agirrezabala had saved an initial effort.

Racing responded before half-time, with Moroccan star Zabiri racing onto a ball over the top before calmly finishing with his left foot past Antonio Sivera.

The forward completed his brace early in the second half, meeting Inigo Vicente’s cross to put Racing ahead.

Alaves pushed for an equaliser but struggled to create clear chances as Racing held on for their second victory of the season.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang matched a remarkable LaLiga record last achieved by Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2009 after scoring in Deportivo La Coruna’s 1-1 draw with Getafe.

The 37-year-old has now found the net in each of his side’s opening five league matches of the 2026/27 campaign.

The former Gabon international became only the 11th player in LaLiga history to score in the opening five rounds of a season. 

His remarkable run began against Elche before goals against Malaga, Valencia and Villarreal.

The former Barcelona forward now has five goals and two assists, helping newly promoted Deportivo remain unbeaten under Antonio Hidalgo.

France

Adil Bourabaa and Abdallah Sima were both on target as Le Mans surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Lens, extending their wait for a home Ligue 1 victory to 2010.

Algeria international Bourabaa opened the scoring after 32 minutes, heading home from close range after Louis Mafouta’s effort struck the bar. 

The forward then turned provider before half-time, setting up Lucas Calodat for Le Mans’ second.

Lens responded through Sima in stoppage time, with the Senegal international heading Florian Thauvin’s cross into the top corner. 

Franjo Ivanovic eventually levelled for Lens as both sides settled for a point.

Shina Oludare
Shina OludareFlashscore