African top scorers in 2023/24 Saudi Pro League, Sakala beats Mane, Mahrez

• The 2023/24 Saudi Pro League season is over
• Cristiano Ronaldo stole most of the headlines
• African footballers also scored plenty of goals

The 2023/24 Saudi Pro League ended on Monday, May 27, following an eventful season.

It was the first season full season with Cristiano Ronaldo and other top players who joined from European clubs last year, and it was one to remember.

Although Ronaldo took all the limelight, African footballers quietly made their mark in the league with goals and assists.

Ronaldo scored a brace in Al-Nassr’s 4-2 win over Al-Ittihad on Monday to take his tally to 35. He broke the record previously held by Abderrazak Hamdallah, who scored 34 in the 2018/19 campaign.

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Last summer, several African footballers moved to the Saudi Pro League after being offered lucrative perks.

Sadio Mane, Riyad Mahrez, Edouard Mendy, Habib Diallo, Kalidou Kooulibaly, Bono, and others. Bono and Koulibaly won the league title with Al-Hilal without tasting defeat.

Mane and Ronaldo had to settle for second, while Mahrez and Al-Ahli finished third in the table. So, who were Africa’s top scorers in the league? Sports Brief takes a look.

African top scorers in SPL

5. Karim El Berkaoui – 12 goals

El Berkaoui finished the season as Al-Raed’s top scorer with 12 goals in 30 league matches. His goals helped his side finish 11th in the SPL with 37 points. The 28-year-old Moroccan scored more league goals than Mahrez, Karim Benzema, and Roberto Firmino.

4. Sadio Mane – 13 goals

The 2022 Ballon d’Or runner-up switched the colours of Bayern Munich to Al-Nassr in the summer in a blockbuster move to join Ronaldo. Although they didn’t win the league, the Senegalese superstar had a decent individual campaign.

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He recorded 13 goals and eight assists in the League and 19 goals and 11 assists in all competitions. Mane regularly produced those numbers at Liverpool.

3. Bernard Mensah – 14 goals

The 29-year-old Ghanaian star scored 14 goals in 30 matches for Al-Tai. He scored a hat-trick against Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq in September but struggled for consistency. Either way, scoring more goals than Mane, Mahrez, and Benzema is a big positive.

2. Georges-Kevin N’Koudou and Odion Ighalo – 15 goals

N’Koudou scored 15 goals for Damac in 31 matches. He was on fire in the first 20 matches but faded as the season wore on. The Cameroonian failed to score in the last 13 games of the season. Still, Damac finished 10th in the table with 41 points.

Ighalo was a Manchester United player a few seasons ago. Now, he is scoring for fun in the SPL for Al-Wehda. This past season, the 34-year-old had 15 goals. That is not bad for the Nigerian, who is showing he can still do it at the top level.

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1. Fashion Sakala and Abderrazak Hamdallah – 19 goals

Sakala’s first season in the SPL was incredible. He was the joint top scorer among Africans, scoring 19 goals in 31 matches for Al-Fayha. Only Ronaldo and Al-Hilal’s Aleksandar Mitrovic scored more than him. Al-Fayha finished ninth in the table.

Meanwhile, Hamdallah continues to produce goals in the SPL. He ended up as Al-Ittihad’s top scorer in the league with 19 goals. The 33-year-old Moroccan is a three-time SPL Golden Boot winner and two-time SPL champion. He has played in seven seasons in the SPL and has scored 129 goals in 137 appearances. Only two players have scored more than him in SPL history, per Transfermarkt.

Ronaldo’s SPL milestones

Sports Brief earlier reported on Ronaldo setting two historic milestones in Al-Nassr’s final game of the season.

The Portuguese veteran broke Hamdallah’s record and became the first player to win the Golden Boot in four different leagues: La Liga (three times), the Premier League, Serie A, and now the Saudi Pro League.