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0 After a difficult on-field year for the Black Stars, the 2024 CAF Awards was once again a candid reflection of the team’s downward spiral, as rivals Ivory Coast and Nigeria bagged major laurels.
The headline act on Monday night, the 2024 CAF Player of the Year, was scooped by Nigeria’s Ademola Lookman, while Ivory Coast was adjudged as the Men’s National Team of the Year.
But for Mohammed Kudus’ inclusion in the Team of the Year, Ghana—four-time Africa Cup of Nations champions—would have had no representation in the award ceremony.
Although former Dreams FC and Barcelona B forward Aziz Issah made the shortlist for the Goal of the Year award, his paltry 4512 votes saw him finish second from bottom as Angola’s Mabululu picked up the award.
An award ceremony that was once dominated by Ghanaians has no Ghanaian close to it now.
The legendary Abedi Pele became a trailblazer when he won the prestigious Men’s Player of the Year in three successive years (1991-1993).
Abedi’s achievements, however, seem a distant memory as Ghana continues to struggle for continental recognition.
Since Andre Ayew’s third-place finish in 2015, no Ghanaian has mounted the podium. Ghana’s closest shot at winning the award since 2008 has been Asamoah Gyan, who finished second.
With a plethora of stars in the current Black Stars team, Ghana will be looking to one of their household names to succeed Abedi Pele as the first Ghanaian to win the award since 1993.
The post 2024 CAF Awards: Kudus lone Ghana star as rivals sweep top honours first appeared on 3News.
