Wigan Athletic announced the appointment of Cote d'Ivoire legend Kolo Toure as their head coach on Tuesday, with the former Arsenal and Manchester City star embarking on a new stage in his remarkable career.
The two-time Premier League champion -- no African player has more top flight appearances -- has previously worked in Brendan Rodgers' coaching staff at Leicester City and Celtic, but now has the opportunity to go it alone in the Championship.
He's the latest in a long list of legendary African players to have embarked on a managerial career, but while all of these stars reached the pinnacle of the continental game during their playing days, not all of them could translate that to success in the dugout.
Aliou Cisse
The Player: Inspirational leader of Senegal's greatest side, playing a key role in the Teranga Lions' run to the Africa Cup of Nations final in 2002 and the World Cup quarterfinals later that year.
At club level, Cisse moved to Birmingham City after featuring in Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain, Montpellier and LOSC Lille, although injuries affected his ability to make an impact in the Midlands or later with Portsmouth.
A defensive midfielder, his technical ability was limited, but he was respected for his leadership, competitiveness and tenacity.
The Manager: The most successful head coach in Senegal's history, Cisse is the first manager to qualify the national side for consecutive World Cups, and ended the Teranga Lions' wait for a maiden Africa Cup of Nations title.
He's got the best out of a talented generation, and earned plaudits for his dignity, calming presence and noble leadership of the side, fostering a family atmosphere within the Lions camp. This Senegal side, even without Sadio Mane, may yet emulate the glorious generation of 2002.
Rigobert Song
The Player: Captained Cameroon at five Africa Cup of Nations -- winning the title twice -- and also holds the African record for featuring in four different World Cups. At club level, he represented Liverpool, West Ham United and Galatasaray among others.
A committed, combative leader for the Indomitable Lions, his aggression occasionally boiled over -- along with Zinedine Zidane he's one of only two players to have been sent off at separate World Cups -- but struggled to translate his international performances to club football.
The Manager: The jury's still out. Taking the Cameroon job earlier this year represents Song's first big job, with the 46-year-old having only previously held the reins with the country's home-based side and the U-23s.
He deserves credit for the Lions' miraculous late victory over Algeria in the playoffs -- the Fennecs' first ever competitive defeat in Blida -- but bizarre selection decisions, Andre Onana's departure from the camp, and the spectre of Samuel Eto'o threaten to undermine his tenure.
Stephen Keshi
The Player: Another iconic African centreback, Keshi enjoyed a decade and a half in the heart of Nigeria's defence, winning the Africa Cup of Nations as part of the Golden Generation in 1994 and twice making the Team of the Tournament.
He starred as captain of Belgian giants Anderlecht, winning a swathe of domestic silverware, and was nicknamed 'Big Boss' for his immense influence.
The Manager: One of only two people to win the Nations Cup as both a player and a coach, Keshi dragged Nigeria back to the pinnacle of African football after picking up the pieces following a poor World Cup, blending together foreign-based stars and home-based heroes to win the title in South Africa in 2013.
Against a backdrop of NFF disruption, he reached the knockout stages of the World Cup in 2014, having previously qualified Togo to their first ever appearance at the Mondiale in 2006. He passed away in 2016, at the age of 54.
Shaka Hislop defends Luis Suarez ahead of Uruguay's World Cup match against Ghana, after his infamous handball was raised in a press conference.
Sunday Oliseh
The Player: One of Europe's finest midfielders during the late 90s and early 00s, Oliseh was an accomplished destroyer but also possessed the technique and vision to create from deep, helping change the dimension of an attacking move with long-raking passes.
He represented Ajax, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund -- winning silverware with each -- and was also part of Nigeria's Golden Generation, winning the Nations Cup in 1994 and an Olympic gold two years later. Oliseh memorably scored a thunderous goal against Spain as Nigeria defeated the European giants in their World Cup 1998 opener.
The Manager: Keshi's successor with the national side, Oliseh was likened to Pep Guardiola and Arsene Wenger by then-NFF chief Amaju Pinnick when he was appointed in 2015.
Celebrated for his technical nous -- he'd been a member of the FIFA Technical Committee -- and his European experience, Oliseh, with his degree in Economics, was expected to be something of a technocrat and a modernizer for the national side.
He resigned eight months later -- amidst accusations of unpaid wages and contract violations -- while his fallout with Vincent Enyeama led to the decorated stopper quitting international football.
Oliseh rebuilt his reputation by overseeing a remarkable turnaround with Fortuna Sittard, but departed abruptly, claiming on social media that he'd been asked to "participate in illegal actions" at the club. He was most recently manager of SV Straelen, in the German fifth tier.
ESPN FC's Gab Marcotti defends Morocco after Spain finish 2nd in their group and face them in the round of 16.
Hossam Hassan
The Player: One of the most decorated African players in the game's history, Hassan won over a dozen Egyptian league titles with both Al Ahly and SC Zamalek -- a rare example of a player who bridged the divide between the two Cairo giants.
His long international career -- only two other male players have received more caps -- included Africa Cup of Nations successes in three separate decades, and Hassan netted the goal that took Egypt to the 1990 World Cup. With 71 goals for Egypt, Hassan's record is unlikely to be beaten any time soon.
The Manager: A self-professed football addict, Hassan has been unable to keep away from the game, holding 14 different managerial positions -- book-ended by spells at Egyptian side Al Masry.
In 2008, he saved them from relegation, but has experienced fractious relationships with numerous club owners over the years.
Hassan was present, as manager of Al-Masry, for the Port Said massacre that led to the deaths of 74 Egyptian supporters in 2012.
Benni McCarthy
The Player: McCarthy, who shared the 1998 AFCON Golden Boot with Hassan, remains the only South African player to have won the Champions League, having clinched the award with Jose Mourinho's FC Porto in 2004.
A lethal goal threat before injuries and fitness problems intervened, McCarthy netted 18 goals in his first Premier League season at Blackburn Rovers, and remains South Africa's top scorer.
The Manager: Won South Africa's MTN8 with Cape Town City in 2018 -- his first full managerial role -- but was sacked the year after failing to arrest a dreadful winless run.
He then qualified AmaZulu to the CAF Champions League after securing the club's highest finish in the PSL era, but parted ways with the club in March after struggling to shake second-season blues.
McCarthy was a surprise inclusion in Erik ten Hag's coaching team at Manchester United, and Marcus Rashford has already publicly praised the Bafana Bafana great for his work behind the scenes.
Rabah Madjer
The Player: Another fearsome marksman in his day, Madjer averaged a goal every other game with FC Porto in the Portuguese top flight and became the first African player to score in the European Cup final when the Dragons defeated Bayern Munich in 1987.
He also fired Algeria to the Nations Cup title in 1990, winning the Player of the Tournament award for his performances en route to the title.
The Manager: Not a success. Multiple stints as head coach with the Algeria national side have been as brief as they have been acrimonious, with failure to reach the 1994 Nations Cup and later the 2018 World Cup some of the most notable disappointments.
His dismissal in June 2018 opened the door for Djamel Belmadi, who would go on to win the Nations Cup and embark on the longest undefeated streak in African football history.