FILE PHOTO: Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Ahmad Ahmad (L) poses after he handed over the 2018 African Footballer of the Year Award to Liverpool's Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah (C) past Liberian President George Weah during an award ceremony in Dakar on January 8, 2019. /Getty Images
Egypt's Mohamed Salah, Algeria's Riyad Mahrez and Senegal's Sadio Mane are among 30 players shortlisted for the African Player of the Year award, the Confederation of African Football announced on Saturday.
2019 Africa Cup of Nations champions Algeria has the highest number of nominees for the award with four, followed by Senegal and Nigeria with three. Morocco, Cameroon, Tunisia and Ivory Coast all have two nominees.
Salah has won the award for the last two years twice beating Mane and Gabon's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who is also among the nominees.
In the women's category, 10 players have been shortlisted for the Women's Player of the Year award. Among the 10 are Nigeria's Asisat Oshoala who plays for Barcelona, South Africa's Refiloe Jane who plays for AC Milan and Gabrielle Onguéné who plays for Cameroon and CSKA Moscow. Last year's winner Thembi Kgatlana of South Africa is also on the shortlist.
CAF also announced the list of nominees in other categories. Ugandan goalkeeper Denis Onyango, Algerian winger Youcef Belaïli and Togolese striker Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba, all of whom are also nominated for the African Player of the Year award, are among 20 players in the category for Interclubs Player of the Year.
Morocco and Borussia Dortmund defender Achraf Hakimi and Nigerian duo Samuel Chukwueze and Victor Osimhen lead the nominees for the Youth Player of the Year award.
Defending African champions Algeria, Madagascar, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia have been nominated for the men's national team of the year while Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia are nominated in the women's category.
The male nominees for coach of the year are Aliou Cisse (Senegal), Christian Gross (Zamalek), Corentin Martins (Mauritania), Djamel Belmadi (Algeria), Faouzi Benzarti (Wydad Athletic Club), Gernot Rohr (Nigeria), Mounir Jaouani (RS Berkane), Nicolas Dupuis (Madagascar) and Pitso Mosimane (Mamelodi Sundowns).
The nominees for women's coach of the year are: Alan Djefuma (Cameroon), David Ouma (Kenya), Bruce Mwape (Zambia), Desiree Ellis (South Africa) and Thomas Denneby (Nigeria).
The 27th edition of the CAF awards will take place at the Albatross Citadel resort on January 7 next year in Hurghada, Egypt.
Source(s): CAF