Riyad Mahrez named African Player Of The Year; Oshoala Iheanacho, Iwobi Also Win
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Algeria and Leicester City forward Riyad Mahrez has emerged the winner of the 2016 African Player of the Year award, reports Completesportsnigeria.com.
The Glo-CAF Awards ceremony was held in Abuja, Nigeria on Thursday night punctuated by several high-profile musical performances, including the legendary Afrobeat star Femi Kuti.
Mahrez becomes the second North African player after Morocco’s Mustapha Hadji in 1998 to win Africa’s prestigious individual football award.
Mahrez played a key role in Leicester becoming the English Premier League champions last season.
He won the 2016 BBC African Player of the Year award and also the Professional Football Association Players Player of the season award.
In second place is Gabon and Borussia Dortmund Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who won the award in 2015, while Senegal and Liverpool forward Sadio Mane finished in the third position.
The award for the African Player of the Year-Based in Africa went to Denis Onyango of Uganda and Mamelodi Sundowns.
Onyango was instrumental in Uganda’s qualification for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and also Sundowns winning their first ever CAF Champions League title.
Super Eagles and Manchester City forward Kelechi Iheanacho went home with the Most Promising Talent award.
He also won the award in 2013 after helping the Golden Eaglets win the FIFA U-17 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Iheanacho’s Eagles teammate and Arsenal’s young forward Alex Iwobi emerged tops in the Youth Player of the Year award category.
For the Women’s Player of the Year award, Super Falcons and Arsenal Ladies striker Asisat Oshoala beat Ghana’s Elizabeth Addo and Cameroon’s Gabrielle Onguene.
It is Oshoala’s second Africa Women’s crown after first picking the award in 2014.
Reigning Africa women champions the Super Falcons of Nigeria were crowned Women’s National Team of the Year.
Falcons coach Florence Omagbemi was not so lucky in the Coach of the Year award category as she lost to South Africa’s Pitso Mosimane who led Mamelodi Sundowns to the CAF Champions League title.
The National Team of the Year award went to Uganda who qualified for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon for the first time since Ghana 1978 AFCON.
In the category for the Club of the Year, CAF Champions League winners Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa beat TP Mazembe of DR Congo and Zambia’s Zesco United to the award.
The Referee of the Year award was given to Gambia’s Bakary Papa Gassama, while the Legend award went to former Cameroon player Emilienne Mbango and the late Laurent Pokou of Cote d’Ivoire.
All The Winners:
-African Player of the Year
Riyad Mahrez ( Algeria/Leicester City )
-African Player of the Year-Based in Africa
Denis Onyango (Uganda/Mamelodi Sundowns
-Women’s Player of the Year
Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria/Arsenal Ladies)
-Most Promising Talent
Kelechi Iheanacho (Nigeria/Manchester City)
-Youth Player of the Year
Alex Iwobi (Nigeria/Arsenal)
-Coach of the Year
Pitso Mosimane (South Africa/Mamelodi Sundowns)
-Club of the Year
Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa)
-National Team of the Year
Uganda
-Women’s National Team of the Year
Nigeria
-Referee of the Year
Bakary Papa Gassama (Gambia)
-Legend Award
Emilienne Mbango (Cameroon)
Late Laurent Pokou (Cote d’Ivoire)
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