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The Confederation of African Football has reduced its shortlist for the men’s category of the 2019 Player of the Year award from an initial 30 nominees to 10.
The top 10 include last year’s winner, Egypt’s Mohamed Salah alongside his Liverpool teammate from Senegal Sadio Mane and Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
2019 African Cup of Nations winners Algeria have three players in the top 10 – more than any other nation – which includes captain and Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez. Also, on the 10 list is tournament top scorer and former Nigeria international Odion Ighalo and Senegal’s Kalidou Koulibaly.
Africa’s football governing body has also shortened the list of nominees for its other award categories.
In the women’s category, last year’s recipient, Thembi Kgatlana of South Africa and three-times former CAF award winner Asisat Oshoala also made the list. Both players represented their countries at this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.
The nominations were decided by votes from a CAF technical and development committee along with a panel of media experts. This year’s winners will be announced at a CAF awards ceremony scheduled to hold on 7 January in Egypt.
READ: Confederation of African Football (CAF) releases 2019 award shortlist
Full list of CAF Awards Nominees (in alphabetical order)
Men’s Player of the Year:
- Andre Onana (Cameroon and Ajax)
- Hakim Ziyech (Morocco and Ajax)
- Ismail Bennacer (Algeria and AC Milan)
- Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal and Napoli)
- Mohamed Salah (Egypt and Liverpool)
- Odion Ighalo (Nigeria and Shanghai Shenhua)
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon and Arsenal)
- Riyad Mahrez (Algeria and Manchester City)
- Sadio Mane (Senegal and Liverpool)
- Youcef Belaili (Algeria and Al Ahli Jeddah)
Women’s Player of the Year:
- Ajara Nchout (Cameroon and Valerenga)
- Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria and Barcelona)
- Gabrielle Onguene (Cameroon and CSKA Moscow)
- Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi and Jiangsu Suning)
- Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa and Beijing Phoenix FC)
Women’s Coach of the Year:
- Alain Djeumfa (Cameroon)
- Bruce Mwape (Zambia)
- Clementine Toure (Côte d’Ivoire)
- Desiree Ellis (South Africa)
- Thomas Dennerby (Nigeria)
Men’s National Team of the Year:
Algeria
Madagascar
Nigeria
Senegal
Tunisia
Women’s National Team of the Year:
Cameroon
Ivory Coast
Nigeria
South Africa
Zambia
