By Victor Kanayo
Nigerian football star Asisat Oshoala, has been left out of the shortlists for the 2021/22 UEFA Women’s Player of the Year announced by the European Football governing body.
Oshoala, a Super Falcons prominent member, plays for Barcelona Football Club in Spain.
Also, the Coach of the Year awards have been announced by UEFA.
Oshoala who made the shortlist for Ballon d’Or Award was conspicuously missing from the 20-women list made public by UEFA.
In the absence of Oshoala, her teammates – Spain’s duo of Aitana Bonmatí and Mapi León as well as Swedish Fridolina Rolfö made the top 20.
Beth Mead (Arsenal/England), Lena Oberdorf (Wolfsburg/Germany), and Alexia Putellas (Barcelona/Spain) are the three top nominees for the 2021/22 UEFA Women’s Player of the Year award.
The winner will be named – along with the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year and UEFA Men’s and Women’s Coach of the Year – during the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League draw ceremony in Istanbul next Thursday August 25, 2022.
The rest of the top 20 are Alex Popp (Wolfsburg), Keira Walsh (Manchester City), Leah Williamson (Arsenal), Ada Hegerberg (Lyon), Wendie Renard (Lyon), Lina Magull (Bayern), Delphine Cascarino (Lyon), Amandine Henry (Lyon), Tabea Wassmuth (Wolfsburg), Mary Earps (Manchester United), Selma Bacha (Lyon), Sakina Karchaoui (PSG), Marie-Antoinette Katoto (PSG),Merle Frohms (Eintracht Frankfurt), Christiane Endler (Lyon) and Marina Hegering (Bayern now Wolfsburg)).
Lyon’s Sonia Bompastor, Germany’s Martina Voss-Tecklenburg, and England’s Sarina Wiegman are the top three nominees for 2021/22 UEFA Women’s Coach of the Year award. The rest of the top five are Jonatan Giráldez (Barcelona) and Tommy Stroot (Wolfsburg).
