Moustapha Salifou

Early career

Born in Lomé, Salifou started his career in his native Togo with AC Merlan. The midfielder had fleeting stints with Swiss side FC Wil, French team Brest and German team Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, prior to moving to England.

Aston Villa

On 31 August 2007, Salifou signed a one-year deal with Aston Villa, joining for a nominal fee after a successful trial. Martin O'Neill commented that "He has great determination to succeed at this level and may well prove to be an excellent asset". Salifou encountered problems acquiring a work permit though, and was forced to train with his old club in Switzerland. It was reported on 25 September 2007 that the work permit had been granted and that Salifou was to join up with the squad within a week, however, he did not join up with his new club until 18 October 2007. Salifou made his debut for Aston Villa Reserves on 22 October 2007 creating two of the goals in a 6–0 win over Chelsea reserves. He made his debut for the first team on 12 January 2008 as a 90th-minute substitute in a 3–1 win against Reading. Despite not having played a game, his name was chanted loudly to the tune of the Boney M. song Daddy Cool by the Holte End. He was later rewarded with a one-year extension to his contract. Salifou made his second appearance for the club on 15 March 2008, coming on as a late substitute in the 2–0 away defeat at Portsmouth, as well as appearing in the 4–0 defeat to Manchester United. On 6 November 2008, Martin O'Neill…

Salifou was a member of the Togo national team, and was called up to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He played in all three of Togo's group games in that World Cup against South Korea, Switzerland and France. The midfielder earned glowing reports after a positive performance at the 2006 World Cup, which alerted the attention of many French league clubs, and prompted the nickname the 'Togolese Zidane' or 'the great of the figure of eight' from his compatriot Emmanuel Adebayor, due to Salifou's playmaking nature. On 8 January 2010, the bus containing the Togo squad for the Africa Cup of Nations was subjected to an attack from gunmen; Salifou was on the bus during the attack who was said to be 'shaken but okay' after the incident.

Club

International

Scores and results list Togo's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Salifou goal.

a Libya's flag at the time of match. b Eswatini's country name at time of match. b Eswatini's flag at time of match.