2023 African Ballon d'Or: the 5 favourites to succeed Sadio Mané

The CAF calendar is arguably the most unpredictable of any football confederation. Nobody yet knows whether the CAF Awards ceremony will take place in July as it did last year, or revert to its usual December-January slot. The only certainty is that if it were based on the season alone, two-time holder Sadio Mané would be out of the running for the 2023 Ballon d'Or. After leaving for Bayern last summer, the Senegalese was hampered by an injury that kept him off the pitch for four months.

André Onana (goalkeeper / Inter Milan / Cameroon)

After Senegal's Edouard Mendy with Chelsea in 2021, another African goalkeeper will play in the Champions League final on 10 June. It is Cameroon's Andre Onana. It will also be against the same opponents, Manchester City. Will he enjoy the same success as the Blues' keeper? Inter fans are certainly keeping their fingers crossed for a repeat of the emotions of 2010.

Back then, Cameroonian legend Samuel Eto'o played a major part in bringing the European Cup back to Milan, and a few months later he would lift his 4th and last African Ballon d'Or. He could be followed by his younger compatriot André Onana. Even though he was sent home from the Indomitable Lions' camp during the 2022 World Cup and then snubbed the national team, Onana keeps racking up the plaudits with Inter.

Signed on a free transfer from Ajax, he quickly overtook the seemingly immovable Samir Handanovič. The Indomitable Lion makes a stream of reflex saves and shows good reading of the game and ease with the ball at his feet. Already a winner of the Supercoppa and the Coppa Italia, he has kept 19 clean sheets in 39 games, including 8 in 12 appearances in the Champions League.

Youssef En-Nesyri (striker / Sevilla / Morocco)

He is perhaps the minor surprise on this list. But on closer inspection, his presence among the 5 is not all that surprising. Despite the criticism, Youssef En-Nesyri has often been decisive in big games for both country and club. He played his part in the run that took Morocco to the 2022 semi-finals, notably with that fine header in the quarter-final against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal (1-0), Ronaldo being one of the best exponents in history of that kind of finish, and who was able to admire the Atlas Lion's goal from the bench.

Youssef En-Nesyri is not just about the World Cup in Qatar, though; he also shines on the European stage. He is less sparkling in La Liga, with only 8 goals in 31 games, but in the Europa League he is the one leading Sevilla. He showed the way at Old Trafford by equalising in the closing minutes (2-2), before finishing off Manchester United (2-0) a week later in Andalusia with a double. If Sevilla win the Europa League against Roma and he stands out again, the former Mohamed VI Academy player will be a serious contender for the 2023 African Ballon d'Or. In any case, he is ahead of his compatriots Achraf Hakimi (PSG) and Yassine Bounou (Sevilla), who also had a good World Cup but have been slightly less impressive at club level.

Mohamed Salah (forward, Liverpool, Egypt)

Hit by injuries to Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota, the departure of Sadio Mané and the poor form of key men such as Virgil Van Dijk, Fabihno and Trent Arnold, Liverpool went from a season in which they were two games away from winning everything to a trophyless year (unless you count the Community Shield). Worse still, they missed out on qualification for next season's Champions League. But amid the gloom, Mohamed Salah once again managed to stand out.

True, the Egyptian has not had that devastating burst of acceleration, that speed of execution capable of blowing apart any defence, but he has still posted numbers that many strikers envy. The Pharaoh has hit 30 goals and provided 15 assists in 50 games in all competitions. No African player has been as decisive as him this season. Enough to win a 3rd African Ballon d'Or after 2017 and 2018? Perhaps not. But it certainly keeps him in the race.

Victor Osimhen (striker, Napoli, Nigeria)

A historic, unforgettable season for Victor Osimhen. Twenty-three years after their last title, and after several near misses in recent seasons, Napoli have finally won the Italian league. And the Super Eagles striker was one of the chief architects of that magnificent triumph. Despite a serious eye injury that has forced him to wear a mask for more than a year, Osimhen remains the saviour of the Neapolitans. He has piled up goal after goal, including the one that clinched the title for Napoli. With 23 goals so far in Serie A, he is both the highest-scoring African in a single Serie A season and the highest-scoring African in the history of the competition. For those two records, he has overtaken two illustrious former African Ballon d'Or winners: Samuel Eto'o and George Weah.

So far, it is the performances of Victor Osimhen that have made the biggest impression on the collective consciousness of football-loving Africans. And there is no doubt that if the CAF opened the voting in the next few days, the Super Eagle would run away with it. It would be the first time a Nigerian has won the African Ballon d'Or since Nwanko Kanu in 1999. An eternity for the most populous nation in Africa, which produced four different winners between 1993 and 1997 (Yekini, Amuniké, Kanu and Ikpeba).

Riyad Mahrez (winger, Manchester City, Algeria)

It is almost the opposite of Mohamed Salah. Unlike the Pharaoh, Riyad Mahrez is not posting remarkable numbers this season. But his City, unlike Liverpool, are currently sweeping all before them. Champions of England for the 5th time last weekend, the Algerian could add the FA Cup on 3 June and the prestigious Champions League on 10 June to his fine collection of trophies. If the Citizens pull off this clean sweep, the Fennec will have a very strong card to play in the race for the 2023 African Ballon d'Or. Even though he is not as decisive as last season (24 goals and 9 assists), Riyad Mahrez still has 15 goals and 13 assists.

Also in the running for the 2023 African Ballon d'Or

Zambo Anguissa (midfielder, Napoli, Cameroon), Séko Fofana (midfielder, Lens, Ivory Coast), Sébastien Haller (striker, Dortmund, Ivory Coast), Achraf Hakimi (defender, PSG, Morocco), Thomas Partey (midfielder, Arsenal, Ghana).