Mahrez leads African goal charge in England

Ghana midfield star Andre Ayew marked his competitive Swansea City debut with a goal as his side exceeded expectations by drawing 2-2 at defending champions Chelsea.

Other Premier League Africans on target included Senegalese Cheikhou Kouyate for West Ham, Ivorian Arouna Kone for Everton and Beninese Rudy Gestede for Aston Villa.

ENGLAND

RIYAD MAHREZ (Leicester City)

Mahrez scored two first-half goals -- one a header, the other a self-won penalty -- to inspire Leicester to a 4-2 win over Sunderland. The 24-year-old France-born player might even have claimed a hat-trick, only to see his left-foot shot graze the post after a jinking run during the second period.

CHEIKHOU KOUYATE (West Ham United)

West Ham created the first sensation of the season with a 2-0 win at Arsenal and Kouyate illuminated the path to victory with the opening goal in the 43rd minute. The Senegal midfielder beat Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech to Dimitri Payet's deep free-kick, scoring with his head and silencing the Emirates Stadium.

ANDRE AYEW (Swansea City)

Ghana midfielder Ayew marked his competitive Swansea debut with a smartly taken goal in his side's 2-2 draw at champions Chelsea. The former Marseille player struck in the 29th minute, flummoxing Chelsea centre-backs Gary Cahill and John Terry with a clever feint after his initial attempt had been blocked and stroking the ball past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

AROUNA KONE (Everton)

Injury has prevented Kone from making an impact at Everton following his 2013 move from Wigan Athletic, but he made an encouraging start to the season by netting a late equaliser against Watford. With the hosts 2-1 down in the 86th minute, the Ivory Coast international gathered a pass from Romelu Lukaku before drilling a right-foot shot into the bottom-left corner from a difficult angle.

RUDY GESTEDE (Aston Villa)

One of six players to make a competitive debut for Villa on the opening day, Benin striker Gestede earned his new club a 1-0 win at Bournemouth with a crashing header from a second-half corner. Gestede, 26, joined Villa from second-tier Blackburn Rovers in July for a reported fee of £6 million ($9.3 million, 8.5 million euros).

FRANCE

WAHBI KHAZRI (Bordeaux)

The 24-year-old France-born Tunisia midfielder gave Bordeaux the lead in the 41st minute of their season opener against Reims at their new stadium, making the most of a mistake by Togo goalkeeper Kossi Agassa. Khazri slid the ball from Maxime Poundje in off the post. However, he ended on the losing side with Reims scoring twice in the last 10 minutes to snatch victory.

FRANCOIS KAMANO (Bastia)

Kamano, the 19-year-old Guinea striker, grabbed the winner in a 2-1 victory over Rennes after his side had trailed 1-0. His decisive strike came in the 69th minute, getting the better of goalkeeper Benoit Costil, who had denied him with a fine save 15 minutes earlier.

ABDOUL RAZZAGUI CAMARA (Angers)

The 25-year-old Guinea winger marked his team's return to the top flight after 21 years with a goal in just the fourth minute. His team went on to claim a 2-0 win at Montpellier.