Kenyan players in La Liga

Spanish clubs have increasingly looked to the African continent for fresh talent in recent years. We teamed up with Linebet to look at the history of Kenyan players in LaLiga and whether there are any others emerging at the bottom of the Spanish football pyramid.

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Kenyan players in LaLiga

Player	Club	Appearance
Winter McDonald’s	Royal Society	14
Michael Olunga	Girona	14

1. Winter McDonald’s

• Club: Real Sociedad
• Appearances: 14
• Active: 2011-2012

The first Kenyan player to play in LaLiga was McDonald Mariga. The Nairobi-born midfielder’s European career began in Sweden, but it was at Italian club Parma where he began to build his reputation.

On the verge of a move to Manchester City, Mariga eventually joined Serie A giants Inter on the final day of the January 2010 transfer window.

McDonald Mariga became the first Kenyan to win the Champions League in 2010 and was part of Inter Milan’s historic treble.

🏆 Series A
🏆 Champions League
🏆 Italian Cup

An impressive debut season. 👏 pic.twitter.com/qt9zJXXIll

– Squawka (@Squawka) April 6, 2019

Although he was part of a successful team, he struggled for regular playing time at Milan, and made a bit of history at the start of the 2011/12 season by being loaned to Real Sociedad, and becoming Milan’s first Kenyan player. Spanish top flight.

Still only 24 at the time, Mariga made 14 appearances for La Real, including 10 starts, before returning to Parma on loan in the January window.

At that time, Real Sociedad was only at the bottom of LaLiga under the guidance of French player Philippe Montanier. Even though he has talents like Antoine Griezmann and Carlos Vela.

2. Michael Olunga

• Club: Girona
• Appearances: 14
• Active: 2017-2018

Six seasons later, the second Kenyan international to feature in LaLiga is Michael Olunga. He joined newly promoted Girona on a season-long loan from Chinese club Guizhou in the summer of 2017.

Already a prolific goalscorer for his national team, Olunga was eager to prove himself in one of Europe’s big leagues, but initially struggled to convince his boss Pablo Machin and endured a frustrating period while waiting for his chance.

But everything changed on January 13 2018, a date that will always be remembered by LaLiga fans in Kenya. With Girona already one goal up at home to Las Palmas, Olunga replaced Cristhian Stuani at half-time, and needed just 12 minutes to become Kenya’s first goalscorer in LaLiga.

Olunga wasn’t done yet, completing a stunning hat-trick in the game as Machin’s side cruised to a 6-0 win. He also made history that day, by becoming the first Girona player to score a hat-trick in Spain’s top flight.

The match was very good for Olunga in LaLiga. He moved to Korea at the end of the season, starting only four league games for the Catalan club and failing to add to his tally of three goals.

Another Kenyan player in Spain

No Kenyan player has played in the top flight of Spanish football since Olunga was in charge at Girona. However, centre-back Ismael Athuman has made brief appearances for Las Palmas in the Segunda Division, while he has also played lower down with the likes of Cacereño, Fuenlabrada, Real Murcia, Sabadell and most recently Aguilas.

Although Athuman was born in the Canary Islands to a Kenyan father and Spanish mother, he chose to represent Kenya at international level, making 11 appearances for Harambee Stars.

Real Sociedad also currently has a young Kenyan player named Job Nguono Ochieng. Born in Nairobi, the 21-year-old has made 29 appearances for La Real’s B team in the Spanish third tier where he will remain active until the 2024/25 season. He is known for his speed and ability to play as a striker or winger.