CAF discards Nigeria's Gift Orban in latest Young Player of the Year list

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has released the final nominee shortlist for the Young Player of the Year award, and Nigeria’s Gift Orban fell through the final screening process.

As Pulse Sports reported, the Super Eagles and Gent star Gift Orban was among the nine candidates nominated by CAF to win the award.

The forward had a brilliant season with Belgian club Gent and has been rewarded for his performance. He joined the Belgian side in January 2023 and has scored 27 goals while also providing two assists in 38 appearances.

This earned Orban a place in the battle to win the CAF Young Player of the Year award alongside nine young African players.

He was nominated alongside Dango Ouattara, Souleymane Alio, Ernest Nuamah, Abdessamad Ezzalzouli, Bilal El Khannouss, Lemine Camara, Papa Amadou Diallo, Pape Diop and Amara Diouf for the award.

Ahead of the grand spectacle on December 11, 2023, in Morocco, when the esteemed CAF Awards will return with much fanfare to honour the finest players in African football, the federation cut down their list of 10 to four. 

The Nigerian forward, along with five other candidates, were dropped, leaving a shortlist of five nominees for the coveted prize, rewarding up-and-coming superstars.

Orban, Souleymane Alio, Ernest Nuamah, Papa Amadou Diallo, and Pape Diop were dropped from the initial shortlist, leaving Dango Ouattara, Abdessamad Ezzalzouli, Bilal El Khannouss, Lemine Camara, and Amara Diouf as the final shortlist for the award.