Osimhen, Nwabali up for 2025 CAF Awards

Super Eagles stars Victor Osimhen and Stanley Nwabali have been nominated for top honours at the 2025 CAF Awards, though Nigeria’s national team failed to make the shortlist for the National Team of the Year category.

CAF announced the nominations on Wednesday, with Osimhen making the final ten-man list for the Men’s Player of the Year award. The Nigerian forward will be competing against some of Africa’s biggest names, including Egypt’s Mohamed Salah, Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi and Oussama Lamlioui, Guinea’s Serhou Guirassy, Congo’s Fiston Mayele, Cameroon’s Frank Anguissa, Gabon’s Denis Bouanga, and Senegal’s Illimane Ndiaye and Pape Sarr.

Osimhen, who won the award in 2023, had a stellar season with Galatasaray, scoring 26 league goals to help the Turkish giants clinch the Super Lig title. His exploits also earned him a record-breaking €75 million permanent transfer from Napoli, the most expensive deal in Turkish football history.

His Super Eagles teammate, Stanley Nwabali, was also recognised for his outstanding performances, earning a nomination for the Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year category.  Nwabali will face competition from Morocco’s Yassine Bounou, South Africa’s Ronwen Williams, and Cameroon’s Andre Onana.

Meanwhile, Flying Eagles captain Daniel Bameyi was shortlisted for the Young Player of the Year award, capping a strong representation for Nigeria in individual categories.

On the women’s side, Super Falcons stars Rasheedat Ajibade and Esther Okoronkwo are both in contention for the CAF Women’s Player of the Year award.

However, the Super Eagles were notably absent from the list of nominees for National Team of the Year, despite their impressive run in the 2025 World Cup qualifiers.