Prior to the start of the Africa Cup of Nations, discussions around the Golden Boot were dominated by superstars like Mohamed Salah, Victor Osimhen and Sadio Mane.
However, as the tournament transitions from the group stage into the knockout phase, there is an unexpected name at the summit of the scoring charts.
A brace from Emilio Nsue yesterday earned him 'The X Effect' 🔥Such a brilliant performance 🇬🇶#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 | @AXE | @NzalangNacional pic.twitter.com/BiFhEuxA3r— CAF (@CAF_Online) January 23, 2024
A brace from Emilio Nsue yesterday earned him 'The X Effect' 🔥Such a brilliant performance 🇬🇶#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 | @AXE | @NzalangNacional pic.twitter.com/BiFhEuxA3r
Having racked up a whopping five goals for Equatorial Guinea during the group stage, Emilio Nsue leads the Golden Boot race after three matches.
After failing to find the back of the net in a 1-1 draw with Nigeria, Nsue netted a hat-trick in a 4-2 victory over Guinea-Bissau before bagging a brace in a 4-0 thrashing of Ivory Coast.
To put Nsue’s achievements into perspective, Algeria’s Baghdad Bounedjah is the only other player to have scored more than two goals at the tournament so far.
Better still, the 34-year-old has scored the most goals by a single player during the Africa Cup of Nations group stage since 1970.
It is also worth noting that Nsue typically operates as a right-back for his club CF Intercity, who currently play in the third tier of Spanish football.
For his country, however, the experienced campaigner is deployed as an out-and-out attacker, giving him a license to get forward and score goals.
Nsue started his career at RCD Mallorca before enjoying spells in England with Middlesbrough and Birmingham City. Still, he is best known for his achievements on the international stage.
After representing Spain from U16 to U21, Nuse made his debut for Equatorial Guinea in 2013, pledging his allegiance to his father’s homeland.
Having netted 22 goals in 39 appearances – averaging 0.44 goals per game – Nsue is now Equatorial Guinea’s all-time leading scorer.
Equatorial Guinea completed the group stage with the second-best record in the tournament, finishing above heavyweights Nigeria and Ivory Coast in Group A.
Next up, the Elephants will face Guinea in the last 16, hoping to emulate the quarter-final appearance that they achieved in 2022.
Since 2012, Equatorial Guinea have defied the odds to reach the AFCON quarter-finals on three occasions, finishing fourth in 2015.
If Nsue continues to find the back of the net at a rapid rate, the Elephants will stand an excellent chance of marching into the latter stages once again.