2 years ago
Two Liverpool players have been nominated for a major award.
After the Reds won two domestic trophies this season, Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita have been nominated for African Player of the Year.
The 30-player list of potential participants was released by the Confederation of African Football on Thursday and featured both Anfield players.
Salah tied Hueng Min-Son for the Premier League's Golden Boot after scoring 31 goals in 51 games across all competitions.
To win the competition's playmaker of the year accolade, he finished one assist ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The Egyptian's season got off to an exhilarating start with a stunning hat-trick away at Manchester United and a streak of 10 straight goals.
In addition to the away match against Inter Milan, he scored in each of the six UEFA Champions League group games.
Although Sadio Mane, another nominee for the award, scored the winning penalty in both the African Cup of Nations final and to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, Senegal twice defeated the forward in crucial situations last season.
Despite not living up to his high expectations in the second half of the season, Salah was still able to claim the Football Writers Player of the Year award.
Naby Keita, the captain of Guinea, had what many consider to be his best season with Liverpool since switching from RB Leipzig in 2018.
In all competitions, he made 40 appearances. In the 5-0 thrashing of the Red side of Manchester and the FA Cup Semi-Final, he played particularly well against Manchester City.
Along with many other well-known players, the two Reds players are joined on the list by Mane, a former teammate.
Along with Riyad Mahrez, Mohamed Elneny, Bertrand Traore, and Edouard Mendy, two more prominent Premier League players are Edouard Mendy, the Chelsea goalkeeper, and Yves Bissouma, a recent addition to Tottenham.
In Europe, Kalidou Koulibaly, Franck Kessie, and Achraf Hakimi are the top players, and promising center back Edmund Tapsoba received his first nomination (likely of many).
Salah will probably be in the running for the prize, but Senegalese players will probably get the nod after taking first place in the continent's top tournament.
Total Comments: 0