African star of the week: Max Gradel

African stars are not only shining on the continent but all over the world too, and one individual rose as a giant among them on the weekend.  

This week was not so much about glory for the continent as it had to wave goodbye to one of its long-serving players. Max Gradel followed through on his decision to leave the international football scene and will no longer be donning his nation's iconic orange jersey and using his experience to lead his team on the pitch. 

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The memory of him receiving the winner's trophy from Emmanuel Adebayor in the presence of Cote d'Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara, CAF president Patrice Motsepe and FIFA President Gianni Infantino after leading his side to winning the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations will forever be present in the hearts and memories of all those involved in African football. 

The 36-year-old made his national team debut in 2011. He has since made 112 appearances for the Elephants, netting 18 goals and amassing 12 assists. He has been a crucial cog in the machine. The former Leicester star was also a part of the Cote d'Ivoire squad that won AFCON 2015. 

His final opponents at international level were a Benin side who were determined not be overpowered by the reigning continental champions. They penetrated the Ivorians' defence early on in the game, with Junior Olaitan finding the back of the net in just the eighth minute. Their lead was then cancelled out by Gradel himself who came to the rescue of his nation one last time when he scored in the 29th minute.

The scores did not stay level as Olaitan once more proved to be a party-pooper as he doubled his tally for the day in the 51st minute. The Elephants managed to once more claw themselves back into the game in the 69th minute courtesy of Oumar Diakite. The match ended at 2-2. 

The 36-year-old showed an incredible level of longevity to have been able to feature for his country as consistently as he did over the years. Not only that, he was a apart of two completely different teams who both managed to win one of the Africa's most coveted footballing prizes. In 2015, he started the final against Ghana in the forward line alongside Gervinho and Wilfried Bony with Yaya Toure and co. behind him in midfield. The starting XI for the 2023 final against Nigeria, as expected, was a totally different one with Gradel and Serge Aurier being the only two players from the previous generation included in it. 

The attacker's retirement marks the end of an era, but definitely not the end of the Elephants. 

During AFCON 2023, prior to the host nation lifting the trophy, Gradel spoke about the importance of different generations showing the same characteristics to achieve the same greatness that had been attained before them. 

"Each generation lives in their time. The golden generation of the two previous editions was special and has their own story. This generation is also special and hard working. We are also representing our people and want to create our own story. We are the same family and even though we are different generations, we are writing the same story and representing the people of Cote d'Ivoire," he said per CAF.

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