Chelsea’s star matches George Finidi’s feat following Super Cup win

The Blues beat the Europa League winners on Wednesday night, with Ziyech’s first-half strike elevating him into the record books

Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech scored the Blues’ only goal in their UEFA Super Cup penalty shootout victory over Villarreal to become the first Moroccan footballer to score in the tournament’s history.

Ziyech is, however, the fourth African star to score in the competition, following in the footsteps of former Super Eagles winger George Finidi, Mali’s Frédéric Kanouté (Sevilla in 2006), and Senegalese forward Sadio Mané (Liverpool in 2019).

Nigeria’s Finidi became the first African player to find the net in the European Supercup when his goal helped 1995 European champions Ajax power past Real Zaragoza, winners of the 1994–95 UEFA Cup Winners Cup.

At a time when the Super Cup was contested over two legs, Ajax forced Zaragoza to a 1-1 draw in Spain before whitewashing the Spaniard 4-0 in the return leg in Amsterdam as Louis van Gaal’s men strolled to a 5-1 aggregate victory.

Finidi grabbed the Dutch side’s second goal on the night ten minutes after the interval following Winston Bogarde’s opener before the break.

Danny Blind converted a pair of penalties later as Ajax confirmed their superiority over Zaragoza in front of 23,000 spectators.

Finidi departed Ajax for Real Betis the following year. The 1994 African Cup of Nations-winning winger later turned out for Mallorca and English side Ipswich Town before retiring from professional football.