Al Ahli's Riyad Mahrez believes he deserves the 2023 African Player of the Year award for winning the historic triple with Manchester City.
The Best in Africa awards ceremony is scheduled to take place in December, and among the nominees for the continent's best player award, along with Mahrez, are Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Hakim Ziyech and Yassine Bounou, as well as many other names from inside and outside the continent.
The Algerian international confirmed in a press interview that he is more deserving of the award than any of these names, adding, "Salah and Mane are usually present as candidates, but last year at the collective level is difficult for them."
"I scored 20 goals and assisted 15 others, won the historic triple with Manchester City, I was a key player in the Premier League and the FA Cup, and to a lesser extent contributed to the Champions League."
Asked about Yassine Bounou, who won the Europa League title with Sevilla and may also be a strong candidate, the Algerian replied: "It's a good achievement, but it doesn't compare to the triple, so we'll see what happens."
The Best in Africa award depends on the votes of the coaches of the African continent and captains, and Mohamed Salah and Bounou may be Mahrez's fiercest rivals for the title.
Salah has had an outstanding season in terms of his individual numbers but with little collective achievement in one of Liverpool's worst seasons in recent years, while Bounou led Morocco to the World Cup semi-finals and was a major reason for Sevilla's Europa League title.
Comments