The winner of the 2003 African Footballer of the Year award, due to be announced today, has been been postponed until the end of April by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
CAF will announce the winner – from a shortlist of Cameroon’s Samuel Eto’o, the Ivorian striker Didier Drogba and Nigerian midfielder Jay-Jay Okocha – on April 30 in the Cameroon capital Yaounde.
CAF officials blamed “technical hitches” for the delay, but sources close to the organisers suggested that the awards sponsor wanted the winner to be announced in Cameroon.
Eto’o, who has been shortlisted for the past two years and starred for Cameroon as they won the Confederations Cup last year, is the favourite to win the award.
Nigerian teenager Obefemi Martins heads the shortlist of three for the Young Player of the Year. Martins, who has so far snubbed Nigerian requests for an international debut, was on the original shortlist of five for the senior award, along with , along with Hatem Trabelsi of Tunisia. Arsenal defender Kolo Toure, despite being 23 in March, and Ajax midfielder Steven Pienaar are the others in contention for the young player award.
