CAF Footballer of the Year Drogba Essien Eto'o
Only one man can wear the crown
Posted: 2010-03-10 17:03
Samuel Eto’o, Didier Drogba and Michael Essien are three African football stars who are household names in Africa and all over the world.
A popularity survey would show any interested party that these lads enjoy more popularity than even the presidents of their countries. What was the name of Cameroon’s president again? Right.
From a purely football perspective, these young men have done enough to each wear a crown of their own with their performances in the last year. If they were from another continent, cue Asia or Oceania, they would no doubt be the kings of the pack.
But only one man can wear the crown. A Yoruba adage says there cannot be two kings in a palace, it is forbidden.
No doubt, each player has, in his own way, proven that he deserves to be named African Footballer of the Year in Accra on Thursday night. But the awards have seldom gone according to popular opinion. The federation coaches who vote have always been known to have other parameters for giving out their awards, which has usually confounded the average football fan.
This year CAF has the task of giving the award to a field of high achievers who have traversed the playing field like a Colossus in the last year.
Inter striker Eto’o is arguably the most qualified for the title this term with his fine displays in the last year, when he won a treble with his former club, Spanish giants Barcelona.
He not only won the titles alongside his team, he was very pivotal in the business end with his Champions League goal against Manchester United being the most memorable, making him the only player to have scored two goals in the final of the tournament with a winning side.
Drogba has been very influential at Chelsea this season, but he fell out of favour for most of last season under former coach Luis Felipe Scolari. His return to the side under Guus Hiddink ensured he had a good end to the season, winning the FA Cup.
Essien has shown consistency with his club Chelsea, becoming, over time, the fulcrum of the midfield which has always suffered in his absence. Injury last year meant he only played a part towards the end of the season.
The trio were equally very involved in their national teams’ qualification for this summer’s World Cup in South Africa. Their form at club level was needed to propel their countries to Africa’s first Mundial making their resumes more impressive.
As usual, CAF will favour strikers over midfielders. It is a sad norm which has seen Essien miss out in the last three years. Notwithstanding, Eto’o looks most qualified for this title, which should make it his fourth crown.
Long may the kings reign.
Lolade Adewuyi, Goal.com
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