2025 CAF POTY: 4 Reasons Achraf Hakimi Deserves to Win Over Victor Osimhen and Mohamed Salah
- Victor Osimhen, Mohamed Salah and Achraf Hakimi headlined the 2025 CAF Player of the Year nominees list
- CAF announced the list of nominees for the yearly award expected to be held in Morocco after AFCON 2025
- Hakimi is up against Osimhen and Salah, with the three players expected to make the podium in the men's category
CAF has announced the list of nominees for the 2025 award across all categories, with the Men's Player of the Year headlining the awards.
Achraf Hakimi, Mohamed Salah and Victor Osimhen are the leading contenders to win the coveted Men's Player of the Year award.
Source: Getty Images
As noted by CAF, the three players were nominated alongside seven other contenders, including Fiston Mayele and Oussama Lamlioui, who are the only home-based players nominated.
There is an ongoing debate on social media about who deserves to win the top prize among the top three favourites.
Legit.ng explains why Paris Saint-Germain star Achraf Hakimi deserves the award.
Why Hakimi deserves CAF POTY
1. Individual stats
The Paris Saint-Germain defender, despite playing from right-back, has an incredible stat during the period under consideration for the award.
The former Real Madrid star scored nine goals and provided 11 assists from January 6 to October 15, 2025, for PSG and Morocco. His stats are not far off from Salah's and Osimhen's, both of whom are forwards.
2. Trophies won
Hakimi is the most decorated player on the nominees' list after winning five trophies with Paris Saint-Germain during the 2024/25 season, giving him an advantage.
He was crucial to PSG winning their first-ever UEFA Champions League after beating Inter Milan 5-0 in the final. He also won all four domestic trophies in France, but lost to Chelsea in the Club World Cup final.
Source: Getty Images
3. Ballon d'Or ranking
It gets tricky here because Hakimi, in sixth, finished two places and almost 200 points behind Salah. However, despite having eight of his teammates also nominated and sharing the points, the defender made a good account of himself.
However, the CAF Awards has a different selection process for the Ballon d'Or. The CAF Awards are decided by the Technical Committee, media professionals, the head coaches and captains of Member Associations, and representatives from clubs participating in the group stages of CAF Interclub competitions.
4. FIFPRO XI
Hakimi is the only African male player named in the FIFPRO World XI, with the other contenders, Victor Osimhen and Mohamed Salah, not named in the best player from last season.
The award was voted for by professional footballers, and it speaks volumes about who is highly rated among their colleagues and who is not.
Comparing Osimhen’s stats to Salah's and Hakimi’s
Legit.ng compared Victor Osimhen’s stats to the other favourite contenders for the CAF Men's Player of the Year awards, Achraf Hakimi and Mohamed Salah.
The trio compared relatively well in stats, and Osimhen has an advantage with the most goals and assists during the period under consideration.
Source: Legit.ng
