Super Eagles forward Victor Osimhen will have to contend with Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Moroccan fullback Achraf Hakimi for the Men’s Player of the Year honours at the 2023 CAF Awards.
The Napoli forward, who enjoyed a stellar 2022–23 season in Europe, where he led the Italian side to their first Serie A title in 33 years, has been named alongside the other two stars on the final three-man shortlist for the award.
Osimhen scored 31 goals and provided five assists across all club competitions for Napoli last season, and he also scored ten goals for Nigeria in their 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, the most of any player in the qualifying rounds.
The best of the best.
Player of the Year (MEN) award – Final 3.#CAFAwards2023 pic.twitter.com/s4CzceaejY
— CAF (@CAF_Online) December 7, 2023
Salah, a two-time recipient of the award in 2017 and 2018, scored 30 goals and provided 16 assists in 51 games for Liverpool, while Hakimi capped his league-winning season with Paris Saint-Germain with an exceptional performance at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, helping Morocco become the first African side to get to the semifinals of the Mundial.
Osimhen, who has been tipped by many fans and experts to win the award, could become the first Nigerian since Nwankwo Kanu in 1999 to be named the CAF Men’s Player of the Year. The 24-year-old recently won the Italian Footballers’ Association (AIC) Player of the Year for the 2022–23 Serie A season.
The ultimate winner of each category will be decided after votes from a voting panel consisting of the CAF Technical Committee, media professionals from member associations, head coaches and captains of member associations, and clubs involved in the group stages of the interclub competitions.
This year’s awards ceremony will take place on Monday, December 11, at the Palais des Congrès in Marrakech, Morocco.
