Qatar Star Afif Eyes Second AFC Player Of The Year Award
Date
10/28/2024 11:01:00 PM
(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Qatar talisman Akram Afif could become the first player from his nation to win the AFC Player of the Year accolade twice, following a sensational 2023/24 campaign.
Nominated for a second occasion, the 2019 recipient will fancy his chances of a repeat triumph at the AFC Annual Awards, which will be held today in Seoul.
Afif spearheaded Qatar's stunning defence of the AFC Asian Cup earlier this year, claiming the Most Valuable Player and Yili Top Scorer prizes, while he was named Best Player in the Qatar Stars League after helping Al Sadd SC to a record 17th league title.
The mercurial forward could also become only the third man to win the award more than once after Japan's Hidetoshi Nakata (1997, 1998) and Uzbekistan's Server Djeparov (2008, 2011) – an achievement he will cherish.
“I am very happy to be nominated again and it is something very special, there are no words to describe how grateful and happy I am,” Afif told the-AFC.
“I hope that I can be the third player to win it twice and also the first Qatari to do so; it would mean a lot to me and I could make history in Qatar.”
The 27-year-old will face stiff competition though from first-time nominees Yazan al-Naimat and Seol Young-woo.
Al-Naimat was part of Jordan side that reached their maiden AFC Asian Cup Final and also scored their sole goal there.
For Seol, 2023/24 was a breakout season as the dynamic full-back made his Taeguk Warriors debut and starred at the Asian Cup, having helped hometown club Ulsan HD win a second straight K League 1 crown and reach the last four of the AFC Champions League 2023/24. Seol has since embraced a new journey by joining Serbian giants Crvena Zvezda in July.
Seol, the first South Korean nominee since Ha Dae-sung in 2013, said:“There are many more outstanding players than me in the Korea Republic and the fact that I have been nominated is such a privilege. I am not sure if I deserve this award yet; however, if I do receive it, I would like to think that it is not because I am an outstanding player, but rather a reminder that I should contribute even more to the development of Korean football in the future.”
The trio were all quick to pay tribute to their support system for spurring them on.
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