International Football
MO SALAH SET TO RETAIN AFRICAN FOOTBALLERS’ CROWN
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
If precedence is anything to be considered, Egyptian football star, Mohamed Salah will be named the 2018 African Footballer of Year this Tuesday. He is expected to emerge top again in the same field of trio that contested for the 2017 edition.
The two other contestants are club mate in Liverpool, Sadio Mane of Senegal who will be right at home at the event and Arsenal and Gabon’s forward, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Past winners have always been the echoes of what European media announced. In December 2018, BBC announced Mohamed Salah as the organisation’s African Footballer of the Year.
As in the past, this is expected to get the endorsement of CAF electorate composed of CAF Media Experts, Legends, Coaches of the quarter-finalists of the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup, and Coaches & Captains of the 54 Member Associations.
If he wins, he becomes the first North African to win back-to-back. West African players have achieved that feat in the past.
Samuel Eto’o did it from 2003 to 2005.
Yaya Toure of Cote d’Ivoire won in three straight years from 2011 to 2014.
PAST RESULTS
Year Position Player Team
1992 1st Abedi ‘Pele’ Ayew Ghana/Marseille
1993 1st Rashidi Yekini Nigeria/V. Setubal
1994 1st Emmanuel Amuneke Nigeria/Sporting CP
2nd George Weah Liberia/PSG
3rd Rashidi Yekini Nigeria/Setubal
1995 1st George Weah Liberia/Milan
2nd Emmanuel Amuneke Nigeria/Sporting CP
3rd Daniel Amokachi Nigeria/Everton
1996 1st Nwankwo Kanu Nigeria/Inter
2nd George Weah Liberia/Milan
3rd Daniel Amokachi Nigeria/ Beşiktaş
1997 1st Victor Ikpeba Nigeria/Monaco
2nd Japhet N’Doram Chad/Monaco
3rd Taribo West Nigeria/Inter
1998 1st Mustapha Hadji Morocco/Deportivo
2nd Austin Okocha Nigeria/PSG
3rd Sunday Oliseh Nigeria/Ajax
1999 1st Nwankwo Kanu Nigeria/Arsena
2nd Samuel Kuffour Ghana/Bayern
3rd Ibrahima Bakayoko Cote d’Ivoire/Marseille
2000 1st Patrick M’Boma Cameroon/Parma
2nd Lauren Etamé-Mayer Cameroon/Mallorca
3rd Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Mallorca
2001 1st El Hadji Diouf Senegal/Lens
2nd Samuel Kuffour Ghana/Bayern
3rd Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Mallorca
2002 1st El Hadji Diouf Senegal/Liverpool
2nd Papa Bouba Diop Senegal/Lens
3rd Ahmed Hossam Mido Egypt/Ajax
2003 1st Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Mallorca
2nd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Marseille
3rd Austin Okocha Nigeria/Bolton
2004 1st Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Barcelona
2nd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
3rd Austin Okocha Nigeria/Bolton
2005 1st Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Barcelona
2nd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
3rd Michael Essien Ghana/Chelsea
2006 1st Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
2nd Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Barcelona
3rd Michael Essien Ghana/Chelsea
2007 1st Frederic Kanoute Mali/Sevilla
2nd Michael Essien Ghana/Chelsea
3rd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
2008 1st Emmanuel Adebayor Togo/Arsenal
2nd Mohamed Abou Trika Egypt/Ahly
3rd Michael Essien Ghana/Chelsea
2009 1st Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
2nd Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Inter
3rd Michael Essien Ghana/Chelsea
2010 1st Samuel Eto’o Cameroon/Inter
2nd Asamoah Gyan Ghana/Sunderland
3rd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Chelsea
2011 1st Yaya Toure Cote d’Ivoire/Man. City
2nd Seydou Keita Mali/Barcelona
3rd Andre Ayew Ghana/Marseille
2012 1st Yaya Toure Cote d’Ivoire/Man. City
2nd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/S.Shenhua
3rd Alex Song Cameroon/Barcelona
2013 1st Yaya Toure Cote d’Ivoire/Man. City
2nd Mikel Obi Nigeria/Chelsea
3rd Didier Drogba Cote d’Ivoire/Galatasaray
2014 1st Yaya Toure Cote d’Ivoire/Man. City
2nd Pierre-Aubameyang Gabon/Borussia
3rd Vincent Enyeama Nigeria/Lille
2015 1st Pierre-Aubameyang Gabon/Borussia
2nd Yaya Toure Cote d’Ivoire/Man. City
3rd Andre Ayew Ghana/Swansea
2016 1st Riyad Mahrez Algeria/Leicester City
2nd Pierre-Aubameyang Gabon/Borussia
3rd Sadio Mane Senegal/Liverpool
2017 1st Mohamed Salah Egypt/Liverpool
2nd Sadio Mane Senegal/Liverpool
3rd Pierre-Aubameyang Gabon/Borussia
Former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has been named the new head coach of the England national team, the country’s Football Association said in a statement on Wednesday.
The German, who is England’s third foreign manager, after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello, will be assisted by Englishman Anthony Barry, the statement added.
“We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him,” FA CEO Mark Bullingham said.
Tuchel replaces Lee Carsley, England’s under-21 manager, who has been in temporary charge since the resignation of Gareth Southgate after England’s defeat by Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.
-Reuters
German Thomas Tuchel has been appointed head coach of the England national team on Wednesday.
Born: Aug. 29, 1973 in Krumbach, Germany.
PLAYING CAREER
* Tuchel played for his local club TSV Krumbach, before moving to FC Augsburg’s academy at the age of 15.
* He never played for Augsburg’s senior side and joined German second division team Stuttgarter Kickers in 1992.
* After eight league appearances for Kickers, Tuchel moved to fourth-tier SSV Ulm.
* Tuchel made 69 league appearances for Ulm as a central defender before he was forced to retire in 1998 at the age of 25 due to a knee injury.
COACHING CAREER
* Tuchel began his coaching career with a youth team role at VfB Stuttgart in 2000, working with future Germany internationals Mario Gomez and Holger Badstuber.
* He returned to Augsburg and took charge of their reserve team for the 2007-08 season.
* Tuchel was appointed Mainz 05 manager in 2009, replacing compatriot Juergen Klopp.
* He guided Mainz to Bundesliga stability during his five-year stint at the club, gaining plaudits for his team’s high energy, attacking style of play.
* Tuchel took over from Klopp as Borussia Dortmund coach in 2015.
* He led Dortmund to a 2-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2017 German Cup final. He was sacked by Dortmund three days later.
* Tuchel joined Paris St Germain in 2018 on a two-year contract, replacing Unai Emery.
* He won two Ligue 1 titles, including a domestic quadruple in his second season, and guided the club to their first Champions League final, where they lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich.
* Tuchel was sacked by PSG on Christmas Eve in 2020, despite the club finishing top of their Champions League group and sitting third in the Ligue 1 table.
* He was named Chelsea manager in January 2021 on an initial 18-month contract following the dismissal of Frank Lampard.
* Tuchel revived the team’s Premier League season and guided the London club to the Champions League final, where they beat Manchester City. Chelsea also won the Super Cup and Club World Cup.
* Chelsea sacked Tuchel in September 2022 following a shock 1-0 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb in their opening Champions League group game.
* Bayern Munich appointed Tuchel to succeed Julian Nagelsmann in March last year.
* Bayern decided to let Tuchel go at the end of the 2023-24 season despite a contract until 2025. Tuchel steered Bayern to the Bundesliga title in 2022-23, but they finished the last campaign without any silverware for the first time in more than a decade.
* Tuchel will become England’s third foreign manager after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello.
* Tuchel will take over the team in January ahead of the qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup.
-Reuters
Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Mateus Mane has become hot property after Portugal named the 17-year-old in their Under-18 squad on Friday, one day after England included him in their squad.
Mane was called up for a second successive England youth camp by coach Liam Bramley before the team travel to Marbella for a four-team tournament this month.
Mane is eligible for both teams having played for the Portugal Under-17 side last season. As the Under-18 team is a non-UEFA age group, both nations are entitled to call the player up.
He made his England international debut last month against the Portugal Under-18 side who have named Mane in their squad for a four-nation tournament this month.
With both tournaments running concurrently, Mane can only play for one team and Wolves and England confirmed he would feature in Bramley’s side.
Reuters has contacted Portugal’s football association for clarification.
While players with multiple nationalities have played for more than one country if they are eligible, they are not allowed to switch allegiances at senior level – unless they have played only in friendly matches for the first country.
-Reuters
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