Gervinho is a winger who plays for English side Arsenal and Côte d’Ivoire. Gervais Yao Kouassi came through the ASEC Mimosas youth academy like a string of other Ivorian talents have done. That’s also where he was given the nickname Gervinho. He turned professional at 15 with Toumodi FC before leaving the Ivory Coast for Belgium two years later. Gervinho spent three seasons with the Belgian club Beveren, the last two as part of the senior team. In 2007 he joined the French Ligue 1 side Le Mans. In November that year he also made his debut in the Côte d’Ivoire senior national team, aged 20.
In July 2009 Gervinho transferred to Lille on a three year contract. They finished the 2009/10 season in 4th place before having a great 2010/11 season winning both the league and the French Cup. Gervinho made a big contribution by scoring 18 goals and caught the attention of several European clubs. On 12 July 2011 he signed for Arsenal, for a fee of £10.7 million. He received a red card in his Premier League debut but has since then rapidly settled in as a key player for the club.

Didier Zokora is a defensive midfielder who plays for Spanish side Sevilla and the Côte d’Ivoire national team. Zokora started his career in the Ivorian ASEC Mimosas’ youth academy, which has produced so many top quality players. From Mimosas he went on to Belgian team Racing Genk and French team Saint-Étienne before arriving at Tottenham Hotspur in 2006. Zokora had played in the Côte d’Ivoire national team since 2000. His strong performances at the 2006 FIFA World Championship made several English clubs interested in signing him and he chose Tottenham. He had three good seasons with Spurs, where the team won the 2008 League Cup and were runners-up the following season.
Zokora signed with Sevilla ahead of the 2009-10 season and had another successful year. Sevilla won the Spanish Cup and came 4th in the league, qualifying for the Champions League.

Salomon Kalou is a left winger who plays for English side Chelsea and the Côte d’Ivoire national team. Kalou was first noticed on the international stage while playing three seasons for Feyenoord in the Netherlands, where also his brother Bonaventure Kalou was playing. After the 2005-06 season Salomon Kalou signed for Chelsea, something he at the time described as a dream come true. At Chelsea he has further proven to be a consistent goal scorer.
Kalou tried but failed to acquire Dutch citizenship while at Feyenoord. Since 2007 he has instead been playing for his birth country Côte d’Ivoire, just like his brother.

Didier Drogba is a striker who plays for English side Chelsea and the Côte d’Ivoire national team. Drogba was player of the year in the French Ligue 1 in the 2003-04 season, while he played for Olympique de Marseille. That season he was also the UEFA Cup top scorer. In July 2004 he signed for Chelsea for £24 million and has never looked back since. In his first season in England they won the Premier League and Drogba was the matchwinner when they won the League Cup final. Chelsea also reached the semi-finals in the UEFA Champions League. The following season they defended the Premier League title, while in 2006-07 they won both the League Cup and the FA Cup. Drogba was the matchwinner in both finals. In 2008-09 came another FA Cup triumph while they won the double in the 2009-10 season. In that season Drogba was both the Premier League top scorer and Player of the Year. He is also the all-time top scorer for Côte d’Ivoire. Drogba has twice been voted African Footballer of the Year.