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Yaya Toure in his full regalia as he picks the trophy for the 2011 African Footballer of the Year award |
Ivorian and Manchester City Star Yaya Toure has been crowned the 2011 African Footballer of the Year in a memorable ceremony in Accra.
Toure fended off challenge from Mali’s Seydou Keita and Ghana’s Andre Dede Ayew who won the second and third positions respectively.
The 28 year old star, renowned for his skill, power and technique led Manchester City to their first ever FA Cup victory in 35 years, scoring the solitary goal in the man-of-the-match performance against Manchester United in the semi-final.
He again scored the match winner against Stoke in the finals of the same competition.
Toure has been exemplary in the Ivorian National team, pulling the strings in midfield and playing a key role in qualifying the Ivorians to the 2012 Nations Cup to be held in Guinea and Gabon.
And when the nominees for the Africa Footballer of the year was announced, partisan patrons present at the Banquet Hall State House, Accra were firmly rooting for Ghana’s Dede Ayew, but it was not all too surprising when Yaya Toure was named as the 2011 King of Africa football, sparking tons of applause.
The awards night was short but left an indelible memory on the minds of the patrons present.
The speeches were crisp and the performances from the musicians, choreographers selected across the continent were awesome.
Kwabena Kwabena and Efya led Ghana’s contingent with a great rendition of some of their hits, with Ivorian Zeynab, South Africa’s Loyiso Bala and Gloria Bosman in another superb performance.
The Big Band from South Africa was flawless in their trade.
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Seydou Keita (1st runner-up), Yaha Toure (winner) and Andre Ayew (2nd runner-up) |
It was indeed an assembly of great African Stars as Nigeria’s JJ Okocha, Moustapha Hadji were showered with the Legends Awards.
Ghana’s Abedi Pele and Tony Yeboah, Samuel Osei Kufuor, CK Akunnor, Yaw Preko were also present at occasion.
The night was not only for footballers; Ghana’s ex-president Jerry John Rawlings was present with his family; as well as some top Nigerian actors including Nouah Ramsey.
The night also saw Perpetua Nkwocha pick the Women’s Footballer of the year beating South Africa’s Nompumelelo Nyandani and Equatorial Guinea’s Miriam Paixao Silva.
Other award winners include;
Fair Play award – Libyan National team
Coach of the Year – Harouna Doula
National team of the Year – Botswana
Womens National Team of the Year – Cameroon
Club of the Year – Esperence de Tunis (Tunisia)
Referee of the Year – Noumandiuez Doue (Cote d’Ivoire)
Africa Based Player of the Year – Oussama Darragi (Tunisia)
Most Promising Talent of the Year – Souleymane Coulibaly (Cote d’Ivoire)
Legend Award – Austin Jay Jay Okocha (Nigeria)
Legend Award – Mustapha Hadji (Morocco)
Platinum Award – John Atta Mills (Ghana)