Following his impressive outing at the recently held 67th Ballon d’Or France Football award ceremony in Paris where he was rated as the 8th best player in the world, many Nigerians have endorsed Super Eagles striker, Victor Osimhen, to win the prestigious CAF Africa Player of the Year Award.
Interestingly, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Wednesday, November 1, nominated the dare-devil Napoli striker among 29 other players for the coveted award with Gift Orban, another Nigerian youngster with Genk, also nominated for the Young Player of the Year award.
Since 1999, when the legendary Kanu Nwankwo won his second Africa’s Best Player Award, no Nigerian has won the CAF Best Player title. Mikel Obi and Vincent Enyeama came the closest, finishing second and third in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
The awards, which celebrate outstanding club and national players throughout last year, will be hosted in Morocco on December 11.
Sadio Mane, the forward for Senegal and Al Nassr, won the coveted title in the men’s division last year, but he will have fierce competition from the Super Eagles’ forward, who had a stellar 2022–2023 season with Napoli.
Therefore, the massive support for Osimhen from the home front is not unfounded. The 24-year-old created history by becoming the first African to win the Serie A top scorer title in the 2022/2023 season.
After scoring 26 goals in Serie A (31 goals in 39 games across all competitions), the Napoli player became the first player from Africa to win both the Scudetto and the top scorer award in the same season.
Osimhen, a former Lille striker who was named the best scorer in Serie A last season, also assisted the Partenopei achieve their first-ever quarter-final appearance in the UEFA Champions League.
He had an incredible performance with the Super Eagles in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, finishing as the series’ top scorer with 10 goals while also assisting in guaranteeing the Eagles’ berth in the continental championship game for the following year.
He became the first Nigerian football player to be shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or award in 24 years thanks to his exceptional performance in the 2022–2023 season. The last Nigerian player to be shortlisted for the honour was former Eagles captain Kanu in 1999.
While congratulating the Nigerian international for his exceptional achievements for club and country, Nigeria’s Minister of Sports, Senator John Enoh, acknowledged that winning the CAF award was next for the forward.
“The Ballon d’Or, a world-renowned accolade, recognises and celebrates the most outstanding football players across the globe. For Victor Osimhen to be ranked eighth among such elite company is a testament to his incredible dedication, skill and determination.
“Victor’s journey in football is far from over, and I believe he has the potential to achieve even greater heights in the coming years. We will continue to provide the necessary support to ensure that he and other athletes like him have the opportunity to reach their full potential. Next, we are backing him to win the CAF Men’s Best Player Award,” he said.
Ace sports journalist and Director of Sports, Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, Godwin Enakhena, added, “If Osimhen is Africa’s best after finishing among the top 8 in the Ballon d’Or ranking, any reason why he shouldn’t win CAF Africa’s Best Player award?”
Former Eagles midfielder, John Ogu, like many Nigerians, believes Osimhen has done enough to put him ahead of his competitors for the award, and the midfielder, via X, sent a message to the organisers of the award.
“Dear @CAF_Online, I’m sure y’all saw the whole Ballon dor setting last night. This is exactly how we want such an award to be delivered and well organised for our star boy @victorosimhen9 as the Best player in Africa. Thank you in advance,” he wrote on X.
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In a chat with Trust Sports, Super Eagles Coordinator, Patrick Pascal, said it will be injustice if Osimhen is denied the award.
“Osimhen is the only African in FIFA’s top ten best players and that should automatically give him the superior edge over others in the CAF awards.
“It will be complete injustice if he is denied that after all he has achieved. Nigerians are rooting for him and expecting him to win,” he declared.
Another former international, Mutiu Adepoju, told Trust Sports that he is very optimistic that Osimhen will win the award.
“He deserves to win the award after all. I am very optimistic that he is going to win and Nigerians will be happy to see a fellow country man win the award after several years of not winning it.
“His potential win will bring a lot of pride to Nigerians. But if he doesn’t win, which to me is unlikely, it won’t be the end of the world but as I said earlier, I am very optimistic of his victory,” he declared.
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In the same vein, the FCT Football Association Chairman, Mouktar Mohammed, is backing Osimhen to win the award.
“I think he has done enough to win the Africa Player of the Year Award. He deserves it, especially after finishing 8th on the Ballon d’Or list.
“Osimhen was in fine form in the 2022/2023 season, as his 25 league goals helped Italian football royalty Napoli to their first Serie A title in 33 years.
“He pipped Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan and AC Milan’s Rafael Leao to clinch the Best Striker in Serie A gong.
“Osimhen scored five times in six games for Napoli as they reached the quarter final stages of the UEFA Champions League,” he said.
Nigeria’s U17 women head coach, Bankole Olowookere also said he is solidly behind Osimhen winning the award also.
“This young man has done well for himself and he deserves to be honoured. We all know what he did for his club and how he was celebrated. This is a player who put his all for the national team. He has done well locally and internationally and winning this award will crown his efforts,” he said.
Even as the optimism among Nigerian football stakeholders is quite high, the FCT FA Chairman, Mohammed does not want anyone to throw caution to the win as he said it is not going to be a stroll in the park for the gangling Osimhen.
He reiterated that there were other factors that could count against him such as Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the World Cup last year.
“The World Cup tournament is seen as the biggest platform and Nigeria couldn’t qualify for the showpiece in Qatar.
“Osimhen’s greatest challenge may likely come from Morocco and Paris Saint-Germain’s Achraf Hakimi who won a title with his club and went all the way to the World Cup semi-finals with his country, which is massive.
“Then there is also Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez who won the treble with Manchester City, the English Premier League, the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League.
“You also have to consider the sharp regional divide and vested interest. The Anglophone and Francophone dichotomy has always been in existence, so that is another factor from the political angle.
“But having said that, I still strongly believe that what Osimhen has achieved is incredible and he deserves to win it,” he noted.
Since 1991, only five Nigerians have won the prestigious award. The late Rashidi Yekini won it in 1993, Amuneke (1994), Nwankwo Kanu (1996, 1999) and Victor Ikpeba (1997).
