Mohamed Salah in the Liverpool match. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced the finalists for the African Player of the Year award, but the list does not include Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.
The Egyptian star has won the award twice before, in 2017 and 2018, with the winger achieving great success after moving to Liverpool. The 32-year-old hasn't slowed down since then and remains one of the best players in the world at present – which is Liverpool fans are hoping for a new contract.
Salah has scored 25 goals and made 14 assists in 44 appearances throughout the 2024/24 season for Liverpool, helping the Merseyside club lift the Carabao Cup.
This season, the Egyptian national team captain has raised his level once again, scoring 16 goals and making 12 assists in the 22 matches he has played so far.
Liverpool have two transfer targets to replace Mohamed Salah
Many Liverpool fans will wonder how the 32-year-old was not nominated for the African Footballer of the Year award, especially with the five finalists selected.
Fabrizio Romano Sharing the names of the finalists were Simon Adingra, Ciro Geraci, Achraf Hakimi, Ademola Lookman and Ronwen Williams, all vying to be crowned their continent's best player for 2024.
Why was Mohamed Salah not nominated?
Although Salah had an exceptional season individually, the winger was only able to lift the Carabao Cup with Liverpool, which had a major impact on his exclusion from the quarter-finals.
Lookman scored a hat-trick in the Europa League final to help Atalanta win their first European title, while Adingra impressed in the Africa Cup of Nations.
The favorite is likely to be current Borussia Dortmund striker Geraci after an exceptional 2023/24 season with Stuttgart. The Guinean international has scored 30 goals and three assists in 30 appearances for the German club, helping them finish second in the Bundesliga.
It was a remarkable achievement for a player who had failed to make it before his move to Germany and could see him crowned African Player of the Year in 2024.
