Africans are mostly overlooked when it comes to international football awards, but one player who is staking a claim for Africans in Europe is Gabon sharp-shooter Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after a stellar season with German giants Borussia Dortmund last term.
The 27-year-old former AC Milan youth forward is the only African in FIFA’s 24 Men’s Player of the Year shortlist for this year, which automatically makes him an overwhelming favourite for the CAF Player of the Year next year.
This nomination will surely make Aubameyang present on all list on sports predictions outlets for Africa's top football gongs and he is as short as 3.50 with Bet 365 (source: MyBettingSites) to be the German Bundesliga top goal scorer too.
The French-born Gabonese poacher can look back on an extraordinary 2016/17 season with a smile.
Aubamenyang played an integral role for Borussia Dortmund in their DFB Pokal Cup triumph over sworn rivals Bayern Munich since 2012, where he scored the winning goal. His statistics for the campaign shows that he is one of the world’s leading strikers at the moment.
Having plundered in 31 goals in the Bundesliga to emerge as the league’s top scorer, the ex-Saint Etienne hitman followed that up with seven strikes in the UEFA Champions League, and was named as Bundesliga Player of the Year.
Not surprisingly, he has been linked with a possible move away from Dortmund.
And by virtue of his nomination as one of FIFA’s best players, the speedy hitman is certainly the favourite to land the coveted Africa's gong.
Aubameyang main rivals for the award could be Guinean midfield dynamo Naby Keita and Mohammed Salah.
Keita, who is fast becoming a household name in world football due to his performances for German side Red Bull Leipzig, has been touted as the future of African football after helping the modest Leipzig-based outfit to a UEFA Champions League spot in their maiden season in the German top-flight league.
The 22-year-old made 31 appearances last term for RB Leipzig, scoring eight goals and assisting seven, which caught the eye of Liverpool in the summer transfer window. The English Premier League giants have had a bid of over £70 million rejected by RB Leipzig who are keen on holding on to their prized assert next season.
Mohammed Salah, meanwhile is another player who could scupper Aubameyang’s bid to win a third successive African Best after his outstanding season with Italian giants AS Roma last term, which convinced Liverpool to fork out a whopping £34 million for his services.
The flying Egyptian winger was Roma’s best player last season after scoring fifteen goals in 29 appearance to help the club finish second behind Juventus in the Italian Serie A.
The 25-year-old has continued fro where he left off last season in Italy as he opened his account for Liverpool in their 3-3 away stalemate against Watford last Saturday.
The race to win next year's African Best is underway but the speedy Gabonese striker is well on course to defend his crown.
By: Reuben Obodai
Twitter: @ReubenObodai17
Facebook: Reuben Obodai