'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The African Footballer of the Year award is given to the best African footballer annually based on their contributions, performance and achievements with both club and country. It has been deliberated by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) since 1992. Earlier, the African Footballer of the Year Golden Ball award was presented between 1970 and 1994 by France Football magazine which currently gives out the Ballon d'Or. The changes resulted in the introduction of the parallel Golden Ball awards that were given out to Abedi Pele and George Weah in 1993 and 1994 respectively. Ever since then, so many Africans have won the award. The likes of Kanu Nwankwo, Samuel Eto'o, Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba, Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and many other stars have also lifted the coveted award.
Leicester City winger, Riyad Mahrez is the last man to claim the award. He won it in 2016 after an impressive season with Leicester City, a campaign where he won an unprecedented Premier League title with The Foxes.
The race is getting hotter as the days are passing by and t is the dream of any African footballer to win this award in their careers. Therefore, we take a look at the Top 5 players in contention for the 2017 edition of the award:
5. Mohamed Salah
Awarded the ‘Best Arab player’ in the 2016 edition of the Globe Soccer Awards, Mohamed Salah is in his best form at the moment. He has the great pace which allows him to beat defenders almost at will. He creates a lot of chances and also manages to score goals in abundance.
Salah played a crucial part for Roma last year helping the Italian club finish second on the table behind league leaders Juventus, scoring 19 goals and assisting a further 13. He joined Liverpool in the last transfer window and has already established himself in the team. So far, he has 5 goals and 1 assist to his name in just 9 matches.
He is a strong presence among the candidates to win the award this year.
4. Victor Moses
One of the most influential players in Antonio Conte's Premier League success last season with Chelsea is Victor Moses. The Nigerian was very instrumental in Conte's 3-4-3 formation where he was deployed as a transitional player helping in both attack and defence. He had an excellent season last year winning the Premier League title with Chelsea.
Moses has 4 appearances so far, creating 4 chances in total with an impressive 75% average pass accuracy in the current campaign for the Blues. After an impressive year, the Nigerian is heavily tipped to fight for the award.
3. Riyad Mahrez
Mahrez claimed the award last year and is in contention to win it again. He helped to keep Leicester out of the relegation zone last year after a slow start to the season halted their chances of retaining the Premier League. He also inspired The Foxes to the Quarter Finals of the UEFA Champions League. His performances have earned him the right to compete for Africa's biggest award yet again. So far, he has 2 assists to his name in the new campaign.
2. Pierre Emerick Aubameyang
The most prolific African striker in recent years is well seated on the list. Aubameyang is a one-time winner of the award. The Borussia Dortmund player helped them to the third position in the German League last season and he finished as the top scorer of the Bundesliga with 31 goals. He already has 9 goals and 1 assist in just 9 games for Dortmund this season and will be in contention for the award. Besides, he is one of the favourites to win the award after an impressive season in which he scored plenty of goals for the German giants.
1, Sadio Mane
The Liverpool forward is the Prime candidate for the award. His contributions to the team in the previous campaign cannot be overlooked. He quickly adapted to his new environment and became the most influential player for the Reds last season. His performances ensured Liverpool qualified for the UEFA champions league. Rightfully, Mane is considered to be the man to beat in the award. Not many players can produce the magic and manipulate the ball like him and he has already scored 3 goals and assisted 1 in Liverpool's current campaign and remains a strong favorite to win this year's edition of the award.
