When Arouna Kone and Levante rocked Real Madrid

The Ivorian’s strike against Los Blancos is celebrated as one of Levante’s greatest moments.

Levante UD raised eyebrows in La Liga last weekend, defeating Real Madrid 1-0 at Estadi Ciutat de Valencia.

The result, secured by a 79th-minute strike from Jose Luis Morales, saw the Granotas defeat Los Blancos for the second time in the teams’ last four La Liga meetings. It also knocked Zinedine Zidane’s team off the top of the standings heading into this weekend’s El Clasico against Barcelona.

Yet that victory over the capital team will not be remembered as fondly as Levante’s first home win over Real in La Liga history – one secured by a goal from an African player.

The man in question was Arouna Kone, who scored the only goal of the teams’ meeting at the Ciutat on 18 September 2011.

The Ivorian’s feat is memorialised on the walls of Levante’s stadium in a monochromatic print in which he is watching his strike fly home despite the attention of defender Pepe.

The English translation of the caption reads: “Around Kone took the ecstasy to the stands of the Ciutat de Valencia by beating Iker Casillas from inside the area after a good play by the sideline of Javi Venta. The match ended 1-0 in that historic September 18th 2011, which also meant the first home win against Real Madrid in La Liga.”

Kone was just one of several notable African players to feature for the plucky Valencia-based club. The Granotas have also featured Lauren (Cameroon), Obafemi Martins (Nigeria), Nabil El Zhar and Zouhair Feddal (both Morocco) among several others.