Mohamed Salah predictably earned a place on the shortlist for the CAF Player of the Year award, but Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly was surprisingly omitted.
Salah stands as the clear favourite for the award having enjoyed a remarkable 2018 in which he has found the net 41 times, helping current Premier League leaders Liverpool to last season’s Champions League final, where they were beaten 3-1 by Real Madrid.
His Liverpool team-mate Sadio Mane, Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alex Iwobi and Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez are also on the list, as is Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana and Juventus defender Medhi Benatia.
Anice Badri (Tunisia and ES Tunis), Denis Onyango (Uganda and Mamelodi Sundowns) and Walid Soliman (Egypt and Al Ahly) are the three African-based players to be nominated.
In the female variant, three-time winner Asisat Oshoala, Francisca Ordega and Onome Ebi make the top 11.
CAF will announce the awards winners in their ceremony on Thursday, January 4, 2018 in Accra, Ghana.
CULLED FROM goal.com