Not really it's very common to see black or African players as purely physical assets and European or white players as more intelligent.
If you are already racially inclined. You'd think that.
No one bats an eyelash when Haaland, who happens to be white, is called a physical specimen because he in fact is. Same is true of Docourre who happens to be black. But I'm sure some of you will squirm if someone points out Docourre's 'physical assets' as if this is supposed to be some bad thing.
People hear what they want to hear if it fits their preconceived narrative. The question is not whether the guy who was called athletic or the guy who was called intelligent is black or white. The question is whether the guy is in fact athletic or intelligent.
That Kyle is athletic is incontrovertible, that Kevin Debryune is intelligent is incontrovertible too. That this fits the unacceptable preconceptions of the "its all about race" crowd is irrelevant.
People refer to intelligent players as intelligent. Not white players. Some of you just like to pretend what you believe is what's happening by matching patterns when it fits your narrative.
This way of thinking is rooted in eugenics. Ask yaya toure about this old chestnut!
Yaya Toure to the side for a second. Eugenics has nothing to do with this. Technical proficiency is much more prevalent amongst European born players (of all races) than amongst African players. Some of that is due to how much technical training support European kids get vis a vis their African counterparts. And some just has to do with what African players focus on.
And as a general rule, it's the most athletic African players who stand out as youths that often go on to get the opportunities to play in Europe.
So it's not particularly surprising that a high percentage of African players who make it to Europe, are around the top percentile in athleticism. It's how they often differentiated themselves back home from the rest. I would know this because I was one of those techical kids as a youth who was outdone by the more athletic kids ( or maybe I simply wasn't any good. Who knows :p) and I still help contribute to my brother's soccer camp back home with technical tools I never had access to. And it's still the same profile of kids winning.
This has very little to do with intelligence. Nor do people ascribe intelligence to it outside of race-baiters who like to racialize everything. Even things that are neither complicated nor hard to explain.
As for Yaya, it's sad to see that lots of our African brothers, Yaya included, are slowly buying into this rotten victimized mentality that presumes others have it our for them, rather than focusing on the reality of the immense and unimaginable success they've become to themselves and those to come.
Anyway. Enough ranting. Back to the greatness that is Doku.
