With the CAF Champions League (CAFCL) group stage having just kicked off, we thought we'd take a look at the 10 most valuable players plying their trade in the continental showpiece.
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With the African Football League having recently concluded, the original premier continental inter-club competition has returned with a bang with some of its biggest stars. The tournament's first matchweek went according to plan for the traditional tournament heavy-hitters, except for one in Wydad Athletic Club.
After the Red Castle made it all the way to the AFL final, many assumed the north African giants would make light work of Jwaneng Galaxy, but the Botswana outfit did not read the script as they left Casablanca with a famous 1-0 victory. Wydad had thus lost their first home game in the Champions League since 2021 despite boasting players such as Yahia Attiyat Allah who, according to Transfermarkt, is the fifth-most valuable player in African club football's premier competition at €2.5 million (R50 million).
Since joining the club in 2019, the Safi native has proved an integral part of the Botola Pro giants' success in recent seasons, helping them win the Moroccan top flight twice as well as the Champions League in the 2021/22 campaign. He was able to win the latter title under Walid Regragui, who now also relies on Attiyat Allah for a star-studded Morocco national team as well.
Click through the gallery below to see the 10 most valuable players in the 2023/24 CAF Champions League:
Ahead of the fullback is a player who, instead of keeping the ball out of the net, has made a case of tormenting defences such as Wydad's in the form of Peter Shalulile. The Namibian enjoyed his most prolific CAFCL campaign to date last season as he finished with six goals, and even scored against the abovementioned Moroccan outfit in the semi-finals, but this was in vain as the Casablanca-based side progressed to the final via the away goals rule.
Nevertheless, the 30-year-old has picked up right where he left off from last season, having already scored in the play-off rounds and the opening match of the group stage against FC Nouadhibou. Injuries curtailed his start to the season, but that has not stopped him from also being valued at a hefty €2.5 million.
The title for the most valuable player in the contest, however, belongs to Aliou Dieng. It is perhaps fitting that a player from the competition's most successful side, Al Ahly, has this honour. The Mali international does not play in a glamorous position as a holding midfielder, but under every manager since his move to Cairo in 2019, the 26-year-old has proved his importance to the team through his defensive instincts as well as being able to dictate the rhythm of games, and it is for this reason that he is valued at €4.5 million (R91 million).
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He has been linked with a move to Europe for a number of transfer windows now, but as he is still with the Red Devils in 2023/24, he will be hoping to add a fourth CAFCL winner's medal to his trophy cabinet.
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