The Nigerian Football Federation has released a statement expressing its unwavering support for Super Eagles forward, Ademola Lookman and Super Falcons Goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie, who were both nominated for the prestigious 2024 CAF awards holding in Marrakech, Morocco tonight.
Ademola Lookman was nominated for the African Player of the year award following his impressive performances for club and country, leading Nigeria to the AFCON final and Atalanta to the Coppa Italia final and the Europa League trophy. He vies for the award with other superstars including: Achraf Hakimi (Morocco), Serhou Guirassy (Guinea), Simon Adingra (Ivory Coast), and Ronwen Williams (South Africa).
Meanwhile Chiamaka Nnadozie was nominated for the CAF Women’s Player of the year award where she competes against Sanaa Mssoudy (Morocco) and Barbara Banda (Zambia), and also the Goalkeeper of the year award where she views with Andile Dlamini (South Africa) and Khadija Er-Rmichi (Morocco).
In their statement, the NFF expressed enthusiasm in Lookman’s chances for the best player award, asserting that he is heads and shoulders above his African counterparts: “All things being equal, Nigeria’s Ademola Lookman should be crowned the African Player of The Year at Monday evening’s 2024 CAF Awards at the Palais des Congrés in the Moroccan city of Marrakech,” the statement said.
More Read
“None of the four other final nominees comes close. Ivorian Simon Adingra, whose remarkable second-half performance saw the Elephants overcome Nigeria in the AFCON Final in Abidjan on February 11, cannot point to such a glittering record with English Premier League club, Brighton,” they added.
The NFF also sang the praises of Chiamaka Nnadozie, highlighting how impressive her season was for both club and country: “In the women’s category, Nigeria’s Chiamaka Nnadozie is a worthy contender for the Player of The Year (won for the sixth time last year by compatriot Asisat Oshoala),” they said.
“The gong will cap a remarkable year for the soft-spoken safe hands who helped Nigeria re-appear at the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament after 16 years, was key to the Falcons’ qualification for next year’s AFCON and drew rave reviews all around with French club, Paris FC,” they asserted.
Asides Lookman and Nnadozie, Falconets and Rivers Angels forward Chiamaka Okwuchukwu was nominated for the Women’s Young Player of the Year, competing with FC Masar’s Habiba Sabry and AS FAR’s Doha El Madani.
The Super Eagles and Super Falcons were also both nominated for National Team of the Year, with the former competing against the Elephants of Ivory Coast and Bafana Bafana of South Africa, while the latter vie against Morocco and South Africa’s Banyana Banyana.
The ceremony will take place at the Palais des Congrès from 19:00 Moroccan time (18:00 GMT, 19:00 Lagos time, 20:00 Johannesburg time, and 21:00 East African time).
© Bold Media Innovations & Creative Hub Limited. All rights reserved. If sharing, kindly credit Bold Sports as the source and include a link to the original post. Unauthorised use is prohibited.
