Three weeks after the initial long list was published, CAF has officially announced the top five nominees in each men's category for the upcoming CAF Awards 2024, scheduled to be held in Marrakech, Morocco, by December 16.
Lookman, who shone in the Europa League with Atalanta, heads the shortlist for the Men’s Player of the Year Award, competing against Ivory Coast’s Simon Adingra, Guinea’s Serhou Guirassy, Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi, and South Africa’s Ronwen Williams. The absence of Troost-Ekong, the MVP of AFCON 2023, from the final shortlist is unexpected.
Nwabali, who excelled for Nigeria during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast earlier this year, will compete for the goalkeeper award against Williams, as well as Manchester United’s Andre Onana from Cameroon, Ivory Coast’s Yahia Fofana, and Egypt’s Mostafa Shobeir.
Additionally, former Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro was not included in the final shortlist for the Coach of the Year award, which features Ivory Coast’s AFCON-winning coach Emerse Fae, Pedro Goncalves from Angola, Sebastien Desabre from DR Congo, Marcel Koller from Al Ahly, and Hugo Broos from South Africa.
Nigeria remains a contender for the National Team of the Year award, alongside reigning African champions Ivory Coast, DR Congo, South Africa, and Sudan.
CAF has also announced other categories, including Interclub Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year, and Club of the Year, bringing the total number of confirmed categories in the men’s section of the awards to seven.
The 2024 CAF Awards will recognize achievements from January 2024 to October 2024. Lookman is considered the frontrunner for the Men’s Player of the Year Award due to his outstanding performances for both club and country during this period.
The 26-year-old player netted three goals during the 2023 AFCON tournament earlier this year and concluded the season with a standout display against Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Europa League final, where he scored a hat-trick, bringing his total for the 2023/24 season to 17 goals and 10 assists across all competitions for Atlanta.
This season, he has maintained his impressive form, contributing eight goals and five assists in 14 matches to date.