The sight was once a familiar one, a strong run, the beating of a defender followed by the bulging of the back of the net. Immediately afterwards, came the huge smile and the pointing towards the heavens. Fredi Kanouté made that trademark goal celebration all his own during his time at West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur. Now after a prolific season in Spain’s La Liga, Sevilla fans have witnessed this again from Kanouté who has thrived at the Andalusian club over the last two years.

With his deft touch, intelligent hold up play and lethal finishing, his coach Juande Ramos has described the twenty-nine year old as his “most important player”. Kanouté spent three years at West Ham, scoring twenty-nine goals in eighty-four appearances for the east London club, before moving to Tottenham Hotspur in 2003 where he netted fourteen goals in sixty games. Back to back UEFA Cup triumphs, the lifting of the Super Cup and the Copa del Rey has given Kanouté his best ever medal haul.

The Mali international spoke exclusively to the Islamic Times and revealed how happy he was in La Liga.

“The thing I was amazed about when I arrived in Spain was the warmth of the people. They received me very well, they really welcomed me. In Spain, the game is more technical, you take time to play good football, to play tactically and have more time to develop the game. I like to play this way.

“I also enjoyed the Premiership, where it was a physical game, a quick game you had to be strong to cope with that. But now in Spain, I have more fun because the team are playing well and we enjoy it on the pitch.”

A practicing Muslim since the age of twenty, Kanouté admits to having been influenced, by Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and also Malcolm X, describing the American Muslim leader as “amazing.”

“This is one of the most beautiful stories about Islam, about someone who came from a poor back ground with the story of slavery. It was normal for him to react to white violence after his father was killed. “It was only afterwards Islam saved him. At the beginning, extremism took advantage of his weakness. When he wanted to know the real Islam, he put a boundary between him and his former group of extremists. He went to Mecca to learn about this beautiful religion, so that’s why he freed himself.”

Off the pitch, Kanouté has been occupied with his charity ‘Development Trust’ which helps orphans in Mali.

“When I walked through the streets of Bamako, I saw how desperate some of the young children were. I wanted to help. I had this idea for quite a long time, I wanted to do charity work and was sure it would be in Mali. With help, I decided to set up the Trust and now it is going very well. “Inshallah, we’re going to start a children’s village for orphans. We’ve bought the land and now we’re talking to an architect who will start building soon.” Kanouté has been surprised by the level of footballer interest at Sevilla for his charity, and the amount of funds collected.

“I talked about it and people were interested and willing to help. However, we need more funds because this is a big project. I believe in it and I know it’s possible”.