Sadio Mane, Oshoala Bag CAF Best Player Awards

Liverpool’s striker Sadio Mane has been named the Confederation of African (CAF) Player of the Year for 2019, with teammate Mohamed Salah finishing in the top three.

Mane and Salah were both named in the final three for the award, with Man City‘s Riyad Mahrez lining up alongside the Reds duo.

The Liverpool’s talisman clinched the award, which took place in Egypt, for the first time having finished second in the last two years while coming third in 2016.

It is just rewards for Mane as his exponential rise continues, having proven key to Liverpool’s Champions League, Super Cup, Club World Cup and recent Premier League success.

His 2019 also saw him named as the Premier League‘s joint-highest goalscorer alongside Salah and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with 22, where his calendar year totalled 31 goals across all competitions for the Reds.

Moreover, Mane helped lead his native Senegal to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations over the summer, where his side fell to a narrow defeat at the hands of Algeria.

Salah, meanwhile, has relinquished his hold on the title having been named Africa’s best footballer for two years running despite matching Mane’s title haul and netting an impressive 25 goals for Liverpool throughout the year.

For Mane, the award is another nod to his incredible performance and consistency levels for club and country and he is showing no signs of slowing down.

Having finished fourth in the Ballon d’Or, being named the best player in Africa caps off what was a stunning year for Mane – and at his current pace, 2020 could yet be just as memorable and rewarding.

Nigeria’s Asisat Lamina Oshoala emerged Africa’s best woman player after she pocketed Women’s price.

Nigeria’s Asisat Oshoala

South African Thembi Kgatlana and Cameroon’s Ajara Nchout Njoya stood in the way of Oshoala’s race to clinch a fourth African Women’s Player of the Year crown at the CAF Awards to be staged in Hurghada.

The Nigerian superstar has been crowned winner in 2014, 2016 and 2017 and is hoping to equal the record of her mentor and compatriot Perpetua Nkwocha who has been decorate four times – 2004, 2005, 2010, 2011.

Since 2014, Oshoala has always made it to the top three in the running for the Women’s Player of the Year award and her prowess in 2019 has seen her achieve the feat once again.

Her successful 2019 began with a move to Spanish side FC Barcelona.

Oshoala was an instant hit from the first moment she joined Barca where she also featured for them in their 2018/19 UEFA Women’s Champions League., scoring in the 4-1 loss to French side Olympique Lyonnais in the final.

She has also scored eight goals for the club, a feat that has seen her extend her stay in the Spanish City with a contract that runs until 2022.

Oshoala was also an integral part of the Nigeria team at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France where the Super Falcons reached the knockout stages. She scored the second goal in the 2-0 victory over South Korea in the group stages, a victory that saw them through to the Round of 16.

They were however eliminated by Germany after a 3-0 loss.

Oshoala also skippered the Nigerian team in the African qualifiers for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics where they were eliminated in the third round after losing to Côte d’Ivoire. She scored in the 1-0 victory over Algeria in the second round.

She also netted in the 1-1 draw with the Ivorians in Lagos, but could not progress after bowing out on the away goal rule following a 0-0 draw in the first leg in Abidjan.

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook