Moroccan trio on African Player of the Year shortlist as Salah misses out
Three Moroccan players — captain Achraf Hakimi, Brahim Diaz and Ismael Saibari — have made the shortlist for the African Footballer of the Year award. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) released the 10-man shortlist last week.
Last year’s winner Hakimi will hope to defend his title; the winner will be announced on 2 December.
But many have raised eyebrows at the absence of Egyptian star and former winner Mohamed Salah from the list.
The three Moroccans led their country to a controversial Africa Cup of Nations title in January. Although Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 after extra time in the final, Morocco were awarded the title after Senegal walked off the pitch in protest over a disputed penalty.
A decision on Senegal’s appeal against being stripped of the title will be made at the end of November.
The trio also helped Morocco reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup; Saibari was the team’s top scorer with three goals, while Hakimi scored one.
At club level, Saibari joined Bayern Munich this summer for a 50-million-euro ($56m) transfer fee, while Diaz has continued to prove his worth at Real Madrid.
Hakimi, meanwhile, helped Paris Saint-Germain win a second consecutive Champions League title.
In 2025 he became the first Moroccan since 1998 and the first defender since 1973 to win Africa’s most prestigious award, finishing ahead of Salah and Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen, the 2023 winner.
The other players on the shortlist are Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast), Yoane Wissa (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Antoine Semenyo (Ghana), Ismaila Sarr, Pape Gueye and Sadio Mane (Senegal), and Teboho Mokoena (South Africa).
Salah’s absence has drawn attention because the Egyptian forward is widely regarded as a generational talent. The former Liverpool star, now with Turkish side Trabzonspor, won the award in 2017 and 2018. Mane won the next two awards.
The women’s list is dominated by Women’s Africa Cup of Nations winners Cameroon — Monique Ngock, Michaely Bihina and Marie Ngah Manga.
Notable names in the coach category include Egypt’s Hossam Hassan — later sacked as national coach over a marital scandal — and DR Congo’s Sebastien Desabre; both led their sides to historic runs to the World Cup round of 16.
Morocco’s two coaches, Mohamed Ouahbi, who led the team during the World Cup, and Walid Regragui, who was coach during qualification, were also nominated, while Cabo Verde’s coach Pedro Leitao Brito made the shortlist for taking the island nation to its first World Cup.
Goalkeeper Vonzinha, who became an overnight global sensation with his World Cup heroics, is among the 10 nominees for goalkeeper of the year.
