Nigeria’s Ademola Lookman favourite for 2024 CAF POTY

Former Mali captain Frederic Kanoute has named Super Eagles Ademola Lookman as one of the top three footballers who are the likeliest to take over the reins from Victor Osimhen as the best player in Africa.

Kanoute, who won the 2007 African Footballer of the Year, admitted the tough competition for the accolade but settled with Lookman, Egypt’s Mohammed Salah and Ghana’s Inaki Williams as his top three picks in a conversation with 3Sports at a La Liga conference.

“I would say it is difficult to [name my top three African players]. I am thinking about Inaki Williams who had a fantastic season with Athletic Bilbao. It’s difficult for me to give names but maybe I will say Ademola Lookman, Mohamed Salah and Inaki Williams,” the 46-year-old said.

2024 has been a great career year for Lookman who started his exploits with notable contributions to Nigeria’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) second-place finish in February.

The Atalanta winger scored three goals for the three-time African champions and was named in the competition’s Best X1 before he returned to Italy to etch his name in Bergamo’s history books.

After narrowly losing the Coppa Italia final to Juventus on May 15, the Europa League final between Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen five days later was all about Lookman. The 26-year-old scored a hat-trick to end the Die Werkself’s 51-matches unbeaten run and seal his side’s first-ever European trophy.

The ex-Leicester City winger wrapped up his season with 17 goals and 10 assists across 39 appearances— posing him as the likeliest successor to his compatriot and reigning CAF Player of the Year Osimhen.