The hard player: Paulo Wanchope
Born on July 31, 1976 in Heredia, Costa Rica, Paulo Wanchope established himself as one of the most unorthodox strikers in the Premier League in the late 1990s. He began his career in England at Derby County, scoring 23 goals in 72 matches, before joining Manchester City, where he netted 27 goals in 64 appearances. He also had spells at West Ham United, Malaga CF and Rosario Central before hanging up his boots.
Nicknamed “La Cobra” by the Colombian press during the 2001 Copa América – where he finished as the tournament’s second top scorer with 5 goals in 4 matches – Wanchope also made his mark with the Costa Rica national team before transitioning into coaching. A nomadic, unpredictable profile, perfectly in line with a player that only 23% of quiz participants managed to identify.
Discovering Le Roi des Footix? Identify 3 football players a day, climb the leaderboard, become the Roi des Footix.
PlayThe medium player: Samir Nasri
Born on June 26, 1987 in Marseille, Samir Nasri joined Olympique de Marseille’s academy at the age of nine and made his professional debut at 17 during the 2004-2005 season. A regular starter the following season, he was named best young player in Ligue 1 in 2007 before joining Arsenal in 2008, where he showed his talent but also his inconsistency.
In 2011, he pushed for a move to Manchester City, with whom he won the Premier League in 2012 and 2014, the League Cup and the Community Shield. Loaned to Sevilla FC in 2016-2017, he then had short spells at West Ham United and Anderlecht before retiring in 2021. His international career followed a similar pattern: at Euro 2008 and 2012, but absent from the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, and regularly criticised for his attitude. In 2018, a six-month doping ban cast a shadow over the end of his career.
The easy player: Mohamed Salah
Born on June 15, 1992 in Nagrig, Egypt, Mohamed Salah started his career at his training club Al Mokawloon before heading to Europe with FC Basel, where he won two Swiss championships. His spell at Chelsea didn’t give him time to establish himself, and it was in Italy – first on loan at Fiorentina, then at AS Roma – that he truly emerged. In 2017, he signed for Liverpool for 42 million euros, and the rest is history.
With the Reds, the right winger went into overdrive: top scorer in the Premier League with 32 goals in his first season, Champions League winner in 2019 by opening the scoring against Tottenham, then Premier League champion in 2020 – ending a 30-year drought for Liverpool. With 440 appearances and 257 goals in red, he became the most prolific scorer in the club’s history. Named African Player of the Year in 2017 and 2018, he is also the captain and second all-time top scorer for the Egyptian national team.