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Wrap: Africa stars in Europe

Paris - Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang claimed his fIfth goal in five games as Borussia Dortmund gave Schalke a 3-0 Bundesliga whipping at the weekend.

Nicknamed the 'caped crusader', the runner-up to Manchester City midfield dynamo Yaya Toure in the 2014 African Footballer of the Year poll celebrated by donning a 'Batman' hat.

Other Africans on target in Europe included Nigerians Kalu Uche and Anthony Ujah, Ghanaian Andre Ayew, Ivorian Salomon Kalou, Senegalese Papiss Cisse and Egyptian Mohamed Salah.

ENGLAND

PAPISS CISSE (Newcastle United)

Cisse scored his 11th goal of the campaign to earn Newcastle a 1-0 victory at home to Aston Villa. The Senegal striker struck in the 37th minute at St James' Park, adroitly cushioning a right-wing cross from Daryl Janmaat with his thigh and slamming a low shot past Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

YAYA TOURE (Manchester City)

Having sat out City's 2-1 Champions League loss to Barcelona through suspension, Toure returned to the starting XI for their trip to Liverpool, only to find himself on the wrong end of a 2-1 defeat that seriously compromised the champions' title defence. Toure's afternoon was summed up late in the game at Anfield when the Ivory Coast midfielder was dispossessed by Liverpool goal-scorer Jordan Henderson in a passage of play that culminated in Daniel Sturridge shooting narrowly wide.

NABIL BENTALEB (Tottenham Hotspur)

Algeria midfielder Bentaleb got his first taste of a major final, but finished on the losing side as Tottenham lost 2-0 to Chelsea in the League Cup final at Wembley. The 20-year-old did not look fazed by the occasion, getting involved in a first-half scuffle with Chelsea's snarling striker Diego Costa, but despite keeping his distribution neat and tidy, he could not prevent Spurs sliding to defeat.

STEPHANE SESSEGNON (West Bromwich Albion)

West Brom further eased their relegation fears by beating Southampton 1-0 at The Hawthorns, but Sessegnon's afternoon was most notable for a crude and unsuccessful attempt to win a penalty late in the game. The Benin midfielder threw himself to the ground theatrically after ghosting between two Southampton defenders, earning himself a booking for diving and castigation from British television pundits.

SPAIN

ERIC BAILLY (Villarreal)

Ivorian Africa Cup of Nations winner Bailly experienced an evening of mixed fortunes as Villarreal held Real Madrid 1-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu. The 20-year-old was, though, at fault for Real's goal as he pulled down Cristiano Ronaldo inside the area before the World Player of the Year converted from the penalty spot.

SOFIANE FEGHOULI (Valencia)

Algeria midfielder Feghouli teed up Pablo Piatti for Valencia's second goal in a comfortable 2-0 win over Real Sociedad which consolidated their fourth position.

THIEVY BIFOUMA (Almeria)

The Congo forward was sent off for two yellow cards as nine-man Almeria held on for a precious point in a 0-0 draw at home to Deportivo la Coruna.

KALU UCHE (Levante)

Uche scored his second goal in just five games since joining Levante in January, but the Nigerian's strike was merely a consolation as Rayo Vallecano emerged 4-2 victors.

ITALY

SAMUEL ETO'O (Sampdoria)

A five-game winless run had dented Samp's European hopes but smiles were back on faces after a 2-1 win at Atalanta where Eto'o saw a pair of chances go amiss before Luis Muriel levelled Guglielmo Stendardo's earlier strike on the half-volley after running on to Stefano Okaka's ball. Eto'o played a hand in the win when Okaka ran in to tap home the rebound from the Cameroonian striker's shot on 77 minutes.

MOHAMED SALAH (Fiorentina)

On-loan Chelsea man Salah came on at the end of the first half for injured Senegalese striker Khouma Babacar and capitalised on his 45 minutes of football, breaking the deadlock on 55 minutes to secure a precious 1-0 win at Inter Milan. Given Inter were on the ascendancy, the Egyptian attacking midfielder's third goal in four league games is testament to Fiorentina's current form and ambition.

FRANCE

JEAN-DANIEL AKPA-AKPRO (Toulouse)

The Ivory Coast international popped up with just two minutes left to equalise at home to Saint-Etienne and keep Toulouse level on points with Evian in the last Ligue 1 position of safety. Akpa-Akpro's international teammate Max-Alain Gradel had given Saint-Etienne the lead from the penalty spot.

IDRISSA GUEYE (Lille)

The Senegal international finished off a sublime one-touch team move by playing a one-two with Portuguese midfielder Marcos Lopes to slot home the equaliser that allowed Lille to come from a goal down to beat Ligue 1 leaders Lyon 2-1.

ANDRE AYEW (Marseille)

The Ghana forward opened the scoring for Marseille on the stroke of half-time but despite the south coast giants taking a 2-0 lead, they were turned over 3-2 at home by in-form Caen.

GERMANY

PIERRE-EMERICK AUBAMEYANG (Borussia Dortmund)

The Gabon forward was Dortmund's 'superhero' by scoring their opening goal in a 3-0 home win over Schalke 04 in the Ruhr Valley derby. Aubameyang pounced on a Schalke mistake to roll the ball home on 78 minutes to claim his fifth goal in as many league games. The 25-year-old celebrated by donning a 'Batman' hat, playing up to his 'caped crusader' nickname, which earned him a booking while their fourth straight league win lifts Borussia to 10th having started February bottom of the table.

SALOMON KALOU (Hertha Berlin)

Ivory Coast veteran Kalou scored Hertha Berlin's 88th-minute winner in their 1-0 victory over Augsburg on only his sixth full league appearance of the season. The 29-year-old ex-Chelsea star took his tally for the season to six goals having voiced his disgruntlement at often being used from the bench this season.

ANTHONY UJAH (Cologne)

The Nigeria striker threatened to spoil Bayern Munich's 115th birthday celebrations by netting just before the half-time break. The 24-year-old slipped his Bayern marker to head past Manuel Neuer for a goal he said he would "cherish for the rest of his life" to make it 2-1 to Munich at the break. The Bundesliga leaders went on to win 4-1.

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