Osimhen wins AIC footballer of the year award

Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen has been crowned the Italian Footballers’ Association (AIC) Footballer of the Year award after his brilliant season in front of goal for Napoli last season.

The AIC awards, which began in 1968, include several notable accolades, including the team of the year, coach of the year, club of the year and goal of the season.

Osimhen, a 24-year-old Napoli prolific striker, was selected as the 2023 winner largely thanks to his goalscoring contributions.

Osimhen bagged an incredible 31 goals in 39 matches across all competitions for Napoli last season and has continued his fantastic scoring record this campaign, as he has already netted six goals in 10 matches.

His impressive form for the Parthenopeans last season, where he helped the team clinch the Serie A title for the first time in 33 years.

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His performances also earned him a nomination for the Ballon d’Or, where he finished 8th, becoming the first Nigerian to make the top 10 of the Ballon d’Or voting.

After leading the line in the Partenopei’s first title-winning season in 33 years, Osimhen and his teammates were recognised across various categories on Monday evening.

The most prestigious award of the night and the last to be handed out is the Player of the Year, which was previously awarded to Rafael Leao, Gianluigi Buffon, Cristiano Ronaldo, Andrea Prilo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Despite a tougher start to the 2023/24 campaign and recent injury struggles, Osimhen has continued his impressive form and has registered six goals from 10 Serie A matches.