By Saheed Ibrahim
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Sports analysts and many Nigerians have expressed their dissatisfaction with the new CAF selection of Best XI footballers in the continent for the year 2018, as no Nigerian player was considered good enough to be among the eleven players selected.

The current African footballer of the year, Mohamed Salah of Egypt/Liverpool, Sadio Mane of Senegal/Liverpool and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Gabon/Arsenal were selected as African best attackers.

Rihad Mahrez of Algeria/Mancheter City, Naby Keita of Guinea/Liverpool and Thomas Partey of Ghana/Atletico Madrid were selected as the best midfielders in the continent.

Koulibaly Kalidou of Senegal/Napoli, Erick Baily Ivory Coast/Manchester United, Medhi Benatia Morocco/Juventus and Serge Aurier Ivory Coast/Tottenham were selected as best African defenders while Denis Onyango of Uganda/Mamelodi Sundowns was selected as African Best Goalkeeper for year 2018.

A sport analyst, Kayode Ahmed berated CAF for the selection.

According to him, some of the players selected over the likes of Ahmed Musa and Wilfred Ndidi were not having enough playing time in their respective clubs.

He added that the exclusion of Hammed Musa’s goal against Iceland in the World Cup as the best goal was “quite strange” and this and other issues had made the CAF awards to be filled with lots of controversies.

“When you compare CAF awards with the Ballon D’or or the FIFA awards, we should be doing better”, he added.

Another sports analyst, Isaac Afolabi, described the selection as “ridiculous. He opined that Ahmed, Musa and Wilfred Ndidi should have been part of the selection.

“I wouldn’t know the main yardstick for the selection, but to be honest, one name that kept ringing bell is Wilfred Ndidi and Ahmed Musa. In the EPL today, not minding the name of the club, I think Wilfred Ndidi is among the top three defensive midfielders. He has also enjoyed similar roles and accolades in the Super Eagles with an exceptional contribution for Nigeria at the just concluded World Cup in Russia. Ahmed Musa in his Arabian club has been fantastic, again scoring vital goals at the world cup for Nigeria”, he said,

Afolabi emphasised that Wilfred Ndidi should not have been excluded from the list, irrespective of his club’s stand on the English Premier League and the leadership crisis rocking the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF).

A sports journalist, Adeleye Olaoluwa, also joined other Nigerians to express his dissatisfaction over the exclusion of Wilfred Ndidi from the list.

He said, “I want to join other Nigerians to make a shout for Wilfred Ndidi, who is not only the best defensive midfielder in Leicester but in England and by extension one of the best in the world. Naby Keita and Rihad Mahrez who were picked ahead of him did not do as much as the Nigerian for club and country in the last 12 months”.

Olaoluwa however stated that the CAF Best XI list was a reflection of the type of football system we have in the country. He noted that “Nigeria may have many players playing overseas but many of them are not playing in leagues that are deemed competitive enough”.

He also berated some players who made move to play in some countries for financial benefits. In his opinion, “players should be more concerned about the progression of their careers before making such desperate moves”.

Nigerian sports lovers and footballers have also expressed their dissatisfaction with CAF awards via various social media platform. The exclusion of Leon Balogun, Wilfred Ndidi and Ahmed Musa’ goal at the just concluded World Cup top their agitations. The inclusion of Naby Keita, Eric Baily and Rihad Mahrez in the CAF Best XI list was considered inappropriate by Nigerians.

At the award night which was held in Senegal on Tuesday, Mohamed Salah of Egypt won the Best Male African Footballer award for the second time while Thembi Kgatlana of South Africa beat Asisat Oshola and Francesca Ordega to claim the Female African Footballer of the year award.

Kgatlana’s goal against Nigeria during the Group B match at the Women African Cup of Nations played in Ghana was voted as the best goal of the year. Other award winners were:

 Youth player of the Year: Achraf Hakimi (Morocco)

Coach of the Year: Herve Renard (Morocco)

Women’s coach of the Year: Desiree Ellis (South Africa)

National team of the year: Mauritania

Women’s national team of the year: Nigeria.