Ademola Lookman may have fallen short in the Ballon d’Or voting last week, but his outstanding Serie A double this weekend demonstrated why he’s the hot favourite to win CAF’s African Footballer of the Year award for 2024.
Lookman seemed to enjoy himself at the glitzy Ballon d’Or ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet, with the Super Eagles forward attending the event with his father and his youth coach.
Lookman watched on as Manchester City‘s Rodri clinched the top individual prize in the men’s game, but one suspects he wouldn’t have been too disappointed, having been among the rank outsiders for the award.
Nonetheless, nomination heralded a major upturn in fortunes for the 27-year-old, who previously struggled to truly find his feet at a series of clubs before landing at Atalanta.
Aside from his double in the Europa League final, as La Dea dispatched Bayer Leverkusen to clinch Europe’s secondary club prize, his star turn against Napoli this weekend certainly suggests that he’s a talent at the top of his game.
It was arguably his best performance since the Europa League final display — although his two-goal two-assist display in the 6-1 mauling of Hellas Verona pushed it close – with Lookman proving utterly unplayable against the 2023 champions.
Ten minutes in, he was quickest to react when Charles De Ketelaere headed the ball into his path, volleying home with his left as the hosts failed to clear their lines. This was a poacher’s goal, made by Lookman’s anticipation, his instincts, and of course, his sharp finishing.
His second, coming just over 20 minutes later, was something completely different. Again dovetailing with De Ketelaere, Lookman was afforded too much space in a right-hand channel, with the defenders standing off him, and after setting the ball up onto his right foot, sent a thumping effort beyond Alex Meret from outside the box.
Mateo Retegui added a third in the second half to seal a convincing victory, but it was Lookman – now on six goals and four assists in eight league outings – who was clearly the game’s outstanding individual.
As well as netting twice, Lookman also created three goalscoring chances for his teammates – no one in the match set up more opportunities – to underpin a devastating offensive display.
For Lookman, while the 2024 Ballon d’Or came too soon, he’s quickly been established as the favourite to win CAF’s Men’s Player of the Year award after being named in the continental governing body’s somewhat baffling 10-man shortlist for the prize.
Lookman is surely the favourite, following his fine showings at the Africa Cup of Nations as Nigeria reached the final, his performances for Atalanta across the year, not least his Europa League-winning display.
1:41
Slot unfazed by Salah’s cryptic social posts
Arne Slot plays down questions about Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool future after the forward’s cryptic social media posts.
Lookman won’t face competition from Mohamed Salah at the CAF awards, after the Egyptian was a notable omission from the shortlist.
But Salah continues unabated, proving influential yet again this weekend as Liverpool climbed up to top spot. He capped off a Reds comeback 18 minutes from time after Cody Gakpo had cancelled out Ferdi Kadioglu‘s beautiful early effort to further Liverpool’s claims of being legitimate title contenders.
This was a masterful winner that highlighted Salah at his best, netting his 164th PL goal after being fed by Luis Díaz before cutting inside beyond Pervis Estupiñán and curling a delicious left-footed effort into the top corner.
He’d earlier been denied by Bart Verbruggen, but Salah – as if smelling Manchester City’s vulnerability over at the Vitality Stadium, as Liverpool’s long-term rivals dropped potentially critical points in the title race – was utterly single-minded in his quest for the winner.
Salah’s goal takes him up to eighth outright in the league’s scoring charts – moving clear of Liverpool idol Robbie Fowler – and the North African is now only 11 goals behind No. 7 in that hallowed list… one Thierry Henry.
“There is no reason at the moment to think that he is dropping in terms of level,” Slot said after the match, before inevitably hinting at the elephant in the room – the fact Salah’s contract ends in June.
“That’s not what you see when you look at his numbers or what you see when he plays. I don’t know how to say this in English, but I cannot tell you how the future will look like.
“I don’t know what the future brings but I do know Mo is in a very good place.”
Salah, seemingly, couldn’t resist making allusion too to his uncertain future in a cryptic social media post after the match.
“Thank you for your support last night,” he wrote. “No matter what happens, I will never forget what scoring at Anfield feels like.”
With City and Arsenal dropping points, Salah’s hopes of (potentially) signing off on Merseyside with another league title ought to be swelling; the Reds are in pole position, on 25 points after 10 matches.
1:35
How can Tottenham find consistency under Postecoglou?
Gabriele Marcotti joins “ESPN FC” to break down how Ange Postecoglou has been changing his side to get more positive results.
Pape Matar Sarr, once honoured as Africa’s Young Footballer of the Year by the Confederation of African Football, has taken his time to realise the potential of his youth but his commanding role in Tottenham Hotspur‘s latest comeback victory suggests that, under Ange Postecoglou, he’s becoming the player many once anticipated.
While few doubted Sarr’s potential when he won the award, he’d been a peripheral figure in Senegal‘s Africa Cup of Nations success – making one substitute appearance – and struggled to impose himself at FC Metz were relegated from Ligue 1.
The intervening years haven’t been easy, with Sarr failing to impress at Tottenham… at least until the arrival of Postecoglou.
His showing against Aston Villa this weekend, as Spurs came from one goal down to romp to a 4-1 triumph, demonstrated his value to the Australian’s project in North London.
Following on from his winner against Manchester City in the Carabao Club in midweek, Sarr showcased some of his more rugged and robust qualities after being selected in Spurs’ midfield ahead of James Maddison.
With two important interceptions and three clearances, Sarr’s defensive contributions were clear, while he also troubled Villa with his powerful runs through the heart of the park, shrugging off opponents and sharpening his sights on goal when the opportunity presented.
He completed 64 passes during the course of the contest, more than he’s managed in any other game this season, and more than any other player on the field on Sunday.
With 79 touches, no one saw more of the ball, and the 22-year-old managed to marry an all-action style with a poised control more effectively than he’s demonstrated previously in North London.
With more performances like this, perhaps Sarr will find himself among the nominees for CAF’s senior prize in 12 months’ time.
