'A worthy contender' - Former Barcelona winger backs Osimhen to win CAF African Player of the Year

Former Barcelona winger Emmanuel Amuneke believes Victor Osimhen should win the 2023 CAF African Player of the Year award despite not featuring at the FIFA World Cup last year.

The Super Eagles forward is set to battle previous winners Riyad Mahrez, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and 26 others for the coveted award.

The 24-year-old bagged 31 goals across all competitions for Napoli last season and was the top scorer of the 2023 AFCON qualifiers but didn't participate in the last FIFA World Cup due to Nigeria's failure to qualify for the competition.

With Lionel Messi largely winning the Ballon d'Or due to helping Argentina scoop football's biggest prize, Amuneke, who was Africa's best player in 1994, believes Osimhen has done enough to be the African Player of Year despite missing the World Cup.

"We hope he wins the Caf award with what he has done for his club and the national team," he told BBC Sport.

"Regardless of not playing at the World Cup [held in Qatar last year], he has been able to establish himself as a worthy contender."

CAF have informed that the winner will be announced on December 11 at a ceremony in Marrakech, Morocco.

Osimhen is be hoping to become the first Nigerian to win the prize in 24 years and the fifth to ever do so.

Abdulkareem Abdulhamid

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