By Sulaimon Jamiu
The nominations for the 2022 edition of the CAF Awards were announced on Thursday, and leading the race for the prestigious ‘Player of the Year’ award are Premier League stars, Mohammed Salah and Riyad Mahrez and Sadio Mane who recently joined Bayern Munich.
Liverpool man Salah, who has won the award twice, shared the Premier League Golden Boot with Tottenham Hotspur striker, Son Heung-min at the end of the season; eventually leading to him being named Football Writers’ Association and Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year. The Egyptian would be hoping to win the honour for the third time.
After leading Senegal to the AFCON title in February and reaching the UEFA Champions League final with Liverpool, new Bayern Munich forward Mane is considered the heavy favourite for the award. The Senegalese was the last man to be named Africa’s best in 2019.
For Riyad Mahrez of Manchester, the nomination for the prestigious individual award comes after a successful season in which the 31-year-old scored 11 goals and provided five assists as City won the Premier League.
If Mahrez is given the award, it will not be his first time receiving it. The winger was previously named Africa’s best player in 2016, following Leicester’s incredible title-winning season.
Other listed in the category are Bertrand Traore (Burkina Faso & Aston Villa), Blati Toure (Burkina Faso & Pyramids), Edmund Tapsoba (Burkina Faso & Bayer Leverkusen), Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa (Cameroon & Napoli), Karl Toko Ekambi (Cameroon & Lyon), Vincent Aboubacar (Cameroon & Al Nassr), Youssouf M’Changama (Comoros & Guingamp) and Franck Kessie (Cote d’Ivoire & AC Milan).
The rest are Sebastien Haller (Cote d’Ivoire & Ajax), Mohamed Abdelmonem (Egypt & Al Ahly), Mohamed ElNeny (Egypt & Arsenal), Mohamed Shenawy (Egypt & Al Ahly), Musa Barrow (Gambia & Bologna), Naby Keita (Guinea & Liverpool), Aliou Dieng (Mali & Al Ahly), Hamari Traore (Mali & Rennes), Yves Bissouma (Mali & Tottenham Hotspur), Achraf Hakimi (Morocco & Paris Saint-Germain) and Sofiane Boufal (Morocco & Angers).
Others are Yahya Jabrane (Morocco & Wydad Athletic Club), Yassine Bounou (Morocco & Sevilla), Moses Simon (Nigeria & Nantes), Edouard Mendy (Senegal & Chelsea), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal & Napoli), Nampalys Mendy (Senegal & Leicester City), Saliou Ciss (Senegal & Nancy) and Ali Maaloul (Tunisia & Al Ahly).
