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Ademola Lookman Wins 2024 African Player of the Year After Europa League Hat-Trick

Dec 16, 2024, 08:33 PM

Nigerian footballer Ademola Lookman has been named the 2024 CAF African Player of the Year at the awards ceremony held in Marrakech, Morocco, on Monday. The Atalanta forward had an exceptional season, playing 45 matches, scoring 17 goals and providing 9 assists. He also won the Europa League, was named Atalanta Player of the Season, and included in the Europa League Team of the Year. Lookman scored a hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final and tallied 27 goals and 12 assists for club and country in 2024. Notably, he was the only African player nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or, finishing 14th in the rankings. Lookman arrived at the ceremony with his parents and gave part of his acceptance speech in Yoruba. This marks the second consecutive year that a Nigerian has won the award, following Victor Osimhen's win in 2023.