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Glo/CAF Awards 2005 takes place today in Abuja, Nigeria (16.02.2006)
cafonline.com
Globacom Limited, a pace-setter in the Nigerian telecommunication sector is set to continue its trail-blazing campaign to raise football to new heights in the country as it plays host to the very first African Football Awards in Nigeria. The event, the Glo-CAF Awards comes up on Thursday, February 16 at the impressive African International Conference Hall in Abuja.
At the historic Ritz Hotel in Paris on March 17, 2005, officials of Globacom Limited led by the Chairman, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jnr and Confederation of African Football (CAF) led by the President, Issa Hayatou signed the contract vesting title and marketing rights of the CAF Player of the Year Awards on Nigeria’s Second National Carrier.
“No costs or efforts have been spared in the preparations to ensure that Globacom provided CAF its best ever organised awards” said Mike Jituboh, Globacom’s Executive Director Special Services. O’mage, a South Africa based Events Management Company are seeing to the design and execution of entertainment on this evening of football excellence, fun and entertainment. Musical entertainment is in the hands of two of Africa’s elite musicians, Hugh Masekela and Lagbaja.
In the main event for the night, it is the race for the 36th African Player of the Year which began last November when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced a list of five nominees as short-listed by their Media Committee and Technical Committee.
Morocco’s Marouan Chamakh who plays for Bordeaux FC, France was a surprise inclusion in the list that also featured Togo’s Seyi Adebayor, then of Monaco. The others are Ghana’s Michael Essien, Didier Drogba of Cote d’Ivoire who like Essien plays club football for Chelsea, and the reigning African Player of the Year, Samuel Eto’O of Cameroon and Barcelona FC.
PROFILE
Didier Drogba
After a gentle-paced start to his career in France, Didier hit full sprint after his move to the big time at Marseille where his stunning form and goalscoring last season helped his club to the UEFA Cup Final and himself to the France Footballer of the Year Award.
And sprinting plays a big part in the big man’s armoury; his pace allied to strength making Didier the type of forward not seen at Stamford Bridge for a long, long time. There is also aerial power in front of goal that at times borders on awesome.
Signed in the summer of 2004, Didier’s reported transfer fee makes him the second most expensive striker in British football history, only surpassed by the money paid by Man United for Wayne Rooney.
The man looking to spearhead the Ivory Coast to a first World Cup Finals moved to live in France as a very young child and played his early junior football at right-back. He dabbled with various small clubs and even turned down the chance of a trial at Paris Saint-Germain, preferring to learn his trade more fully before attempting the big time.
éHe did so at Second Division Le Mans before moving up a division to Guingamp whom injury had prevented him joining some years earlier. It was during this spell in Brittany that Didier first came to the attention of Jos Mourinho but after scoring 17 goals in 2002/3 and becoming an international, he had moved out of Porto’s price range. Olympique Marseille swooped instead and they did not regret their move.
Two seasons ago, Didier’s second at l’OM, he netted 18 times in 35 league games and six times in the UEFA Cup including braces against Liverpool and Newcastle. FIFA recognised the achievements with a nomination for World Player of the Year.
A groin operation forced him out for most of October and November of his first season at Chelsea and it took some time for him to reach full power again. But Didier scored in the Carling Cup Final and the man asked to fill the central position in the front three netted ten times in the Championship winning campaign and 16 times in all competitions. Vintage Didier, he sneaked in the lone strike that killed off Nigeria’s quest for a third Nations Cup title at the just ended Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
MICHAEL ESSIEN
A protracted transfer that dragged on almost as long as the 2005 close season finally came to an end when Michael`s former club Lyon accepted a Chelsea record fee for their star midfielder.
The 22 year-old had grown to become one of hottest properties in Europe in his two years playing in France`s second city. His dominant performances as the team won back-to-back league titles and twice reached the Champions League quarter-final (losing to Mourinho`s Porto on the first occasion) saw to that.
éA powerhouse player who finds no difficulty in getting around the pitch, he earned the nickname `The Bison`. Capable of playing deep in midfield (a much needed understudy to Claude Makelele), Michael has also taken up more attacking positions in France and likes to try his luck shooting from distance. Jos Mourinho has described the player as `multifunctional`. The reported £24.4 million price tag reflects this.
Michael grew up Accra, capital of his homeland Ghana. He remained in Africa into adulthood,
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playing for his country at junior levels and beginning his club football at Liberty Professionals.
His profile was raised by a third place finish for Ghana in the Under 17s World Cup which led to a trial at Man United. But it was to Corsica he went, signing to play in the French league with Bastia. At first he was used to fill a variety of positions across the defence but could not hold down a regular place. Then injury left a vacancy in midfield and Michael would never look back.
Bastia reached the French Cup Final in 2002 and the following summer Michael made the move to league champions Lyon for 7.8 million euros. Last season he was voted Player of the Year in France before making no secret of his desire to move to the Premiership with Chelsea where he made his debut as a sub against Arsenal just two days after signing. He is the most expensive African footballer in the world.
Samuel Eto’O
Twice winner of the Africa Footballer of the Year Award, Samuel Eto`o Fils hopes to wipe off his Africa Cup of Nations misery with a third and unprecedented award. Surely, the title will make up not only for his penalty howler in the shoot-out with Didier Drogba’s Cote d’Ivoire, but will also soothe his soccer nerves for missing out from the World Cup in Germany. Again, it was Didier’s country that benefited from Cameroon’s first absence from the Mundial since 1982.
Eto’O was born in Nkon (Cameroon) on 10th March 1981, and from an early age showed he was going to be something special. He made the leap to Europe at the start of the 1996-7 season, when as a 16-year-old, he was snapped up by Real Madrid, who loaned him out to second division Leganes. He was the youngest player at the 1998 World Cup in France, when he was just 17 years and 3 months old.
After his time at Leganes, Eto`o was again loaned out, first to Espanyol(1998-99, where he only figured intermittently, then, after returning for a spell with Real Madrid, at Mallorca during the 99-2000 season. At the start of the following campaign he joined Mallorca and in the 2000-2001 seasons, played 32 times for the Balearic Islanders and scored 14 goals. During his time at the club he became the leading league scorer with a total of 54 goals.Eto`o came to Barcelona after a prolonged period of negotiations with Mallorca and Real Madrid, who owned a part of the rights of the player. He was signed for a total of 24 million Euros and became the first Cameroon player to play in the first team of the Catalan club.Eto`o has won a number of continental titles and World Cup finals appearances with the Indomitable Lions since his debut in 1998. He was in the Cameroon squad that beat Nigeria in Lagos to the Africa Cup of Nation’s title in 2000. Eto’O won his second Cup of Nation’s title in 2002 in Mali, before joining the team to a disappointing outing at the Korea/ Japan World Cup in the summer of that year. Last season, Eto’O finished second highest scorer in the Spanish League and top scorer for Barcelona. He snubbed a chase by Stamford Bridge billionaires, Chelsea at the start of the current European season.
Past African Footballer of the Year winners
Full list of past African Footballer of the Year award winners:
1970: Salif Keita (St Etienne, France and Mali)
1971: Ibrahim Sunday (Asante Kotoko and Ghana)
1972: Cherif Souleymane (Hafia and Guinea)
1973: Tshimen Bwanga (TP Mazembe Englebert and Zaire)
1974: Paul Moukila (CARA Brazzaville and Congo)
1975: Ahmed Faras (Mohammedia and Morocco)
1976: Roger Milla (Canon Yaounde and Cameroon)
1977: Tarak Dhiab (Esperance and Tunisia)
1978: Karim Abdoul Razak (Asante Kotoko and Ghana)
1979: Thomas Nkono (Canon Yaounde and Cameroon)
1980: Jean Manga Onguene (Canon Yaounde and Cameroon)
1981: Lakhdar Belloumi (GCR Mascara and Algeria)
1982: Thomas Nkono (Espanyol, Spain and Cameroon)
1983: Mahmoud Al Khatib (Al Ahli and Egypt)
1984: Theophile Abega (Toulouse, France and Cameroon)
1985: Mohamed Timoumi (Royal Armed Forces and Morocco)
1986: Badou Ezaki (Real Mallorca, Spain and Morocco)
1987: Rabah Madjer (FC Porto, Portugal and Algeria)
1988: Kalusha Bwalya (Cercle Bruges, Belgium and Zambia)
1989: George Weah (Monaco, France and Liberia)
1990: Roger Milla (St Denis, Reunion and Cameroon)
1991: Abedi Pele Ayew (Marseille, France and Ghana)
1992: Abedi Pele Ayew (Marseille, France and Ghana)
1993: Rashidi Yekini (Victoria Setubal, Portugal and Nigeria)
1994: Emmanuel Amunike (Sporting Lisbon, Portugal and Nigeria)
1995: George Weah (AC Milan, Italy and Liberia)
1996: Nwankwo Kanu (Inter Milan, Italy and Nigeria)
1997: Victor Ikpeba (Monaco, France and Nigeria)
1998: Mustapha Hadji (Deportivo Coruna, Spain and Morocco)
1999: Nwankwo Kanu (Arsenal, England and Nigeria)
2000: Patrick Mboma (Parma, Italy and Cameroon)
2001: El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (Rennes, France and Senegal)
2002: El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (Liverpool, England and Senegal)
2003: Samuel Eto`o (Real Mallorca, Spain and Cameroon)
2004: Samuel Eto’o (Barcelona, Spain and Cameroon)
2005: ???
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