Although Mohamed Salah is the Egyptian player whose exploits in Chelsea and Fiorentina get the headlines and the attention back home, there is another overseas player who is almost unknown in his own country. Or perhaps people just do not really care to know much about him. But Kouka has certainly left an impact on the Iberian Peninsula. A tall young man who dons his green and white striped shirt to conquer the pitch and sow fear in the hearts of his opponents, Kouka's name is similar to a legend in the history of Egyptian football, but he could be on the way to surpassing the accomplishments of his ancestor. He is Ahmed Hassan Mahgoub, better known as Kouka. Kouka is an Egyptian striker who formerly played for Cairo giants Ahly and is currently representing the Portuguese club Rio Ave. Born in March 1993, he joined the Red Devils of Cairo just 10 years later, on the junior team. The striker wore the red shirt for nearly eight years before heading to Portugal to chase his European dream after Ahly refused to sign a professional contract with the 18-year-old. It was, however, a rejection that put him on the road to success. Kouka joined the Portuguese club in 2011, spending the first season with the youth team. However, he did not stay long before he was promoted to the first team. In his first season with Rio Ave, Kouka totalled 23 appearances with his team, with the majority being in the Portuguese league with 17 appearances, in addition to two cup appearances and two league cup appearances. The Egyptian striker scored eight goals in the league and two in the league cup, a total of 10 goals in his first season. With his excellent start, Kouka kept his place secured on the Portuguese team's forward line the next season. He played 14 more matches than the previous season, with 37 appearances divided between the league in which he played 25 matches, in addition to seven appearances in the cup and five in the league cup. But despite playing much more, Kouka's scoring rate declined. The striker scored only six goals the whole season. It was only normal that he would not get the same chance the season after. However, in the current season Kouka showed his abilities, exploding in the faces of his teams' opponents. He scored a total of 14 goals in the 26 matches that he played. The real highlight though was scoring 11 goals in 17 matches in the Portuguese league in which he remained second in the top scorers sheet until he was injured. Kouka's amazing season captured the attention of several well-known clubs, in and out of Portugal. One of the clubs that expressed interest in signing the 22-year-old next season is Sporting Lisbon, as Rio Ave officials said. Rio Ave also revealed that Benfica has Kouka as one of their interests in addition to Malaga in Spain. It was also reported in the Portuguese media that Porto would like to sign him too, just like Basel in Switzerland, and Galatasaray in Turkey. The Italian media as well spoke about Kouka, saying that three Serie A clubs are interested in signing the Egyptian: Torino, Verona and Atalanta. Kouka's current market value has reached 4.5 million euros, according to transfermarket.com even though he joined Rio Ave four years ago for free. Kouka first represented the Egyptian national team in 2010 playing for the U-17. He debuted with the first team on 14 August 2013 against Uganda, in which he scored a goal. The writer is a freelance journalist.
