Liverpool’s Sadio Mane named 2019 African player of the year

Liverpool’s Sadio Mane has been named the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) player of the year.

The Senegal forward beat Liverpool team-mate and Egypt forward Mohamed Salah and Manchester City’s Algerian winger Riyad Mahrez to the award.

27 year old mane helped the reds to the 2018-2019 Champions league title, scoring 30 goals in all competitions last season.

He has scored 15 goals so far in 2019-2020, with Liverpool 13 points clear at the top of the premier league table.

Mane collected his award at a ceremony in Hurghada, Egypt but neither Salah, who had won the award in both the past two years, nor Mahrez were present.

Mahrez did win one award – the African goal of the year for a free-kick he scored for Algeria against Nigeria in his country’s AFCON semi-final victory.

Nigeria and Barcelona forward Asisat Oshoala was named the African women’s player of the year