The Exodus of African Players to China - Drogba, Aiyegbeni, Keita, Kanoute & ...

A new eastern frontier has opened up for African players, with a handful of the continent's top names heading to China to play in its top flight, the Super League.

After Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba left newly-crowned European champions Chelsea for Shanghai Shenhua last month, a number of other seasoned African internationals have quickly followed suit.

Nigeria striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni departed English side Blackburn Rovers for Guangzhou R&F on a three-year deal, swiftly followed by Mali's Frederic Kanoute, who signed a two-year contract with Beijing Guoan, having left Spanish side Sevilla.

They have now been joined by Kanoute's compatriot, Seydou Keita, who has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Dalian Aerbin, after winning 14 trophies with Spanish giants Barcelona.

So, what is attracting some of Africa's biggest names to China, besides the obvious lure of higher wages?

One of the wider benefits for the clubs is that the acquisition of such high-profile African names could well have its advantages off the field.

"China is expanding rapidly in mining and natural resources in Africa," James Porteous of the South China Morning Post said.

"Perhaps the clubs also see opportunities to boost the marketing and political links between China and Africa in that regard."

But the financial benefits are also a big factor in attracting players to China.

"The league - or at least a handful of clubs - is awash with money from club owners, who are often developers riding the huge property bubble in China," Porteous added.

Current league leaders Guangzhou Evergrande are owned by Evergrande Real Estate Group, whose chairman Xu Jiayin is China's richest man. He is said to have injected as much as US$70m in the club in the past couple of years.

As for the African recruits, Drogba is reportedly on around $350,000 per week, with Yakubu said to be earning an estimated $150,000 weekly.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18780903