‘I did not vote for Hakimi’ - Moroccan legend reveals Lookman deserve the CAF POTY award

Ademola Lookman won the African Player of the Year award during a ceremony in Marrakech, Morocco, sparking a heated discussion among Moroccans.

The Super Eagles star beat Hakimi, Simon Adingra, Serhou Guirassy, and Ronwen Williams to the award.

However, Zaki claimed that he supported the Nigerian international Lookman, who was the rightful winner of the award.

Zaki has stated his firm conviction that Lookman's outstanding performances for Atalanta and the Nigerian national team deserved the accolade, notwithstanding the controversy surrounding the decision.

In an interview with Moroccan Radio Mars, via Masrawy, Zaki said, "I did not succeed in voting for Achraf Hakimi. 

“I wished he would win the Golden Ball. He is a heavyweight star, the best right-back in the world, and he still has something to offer in the future.

"Compared to the Atalanta striker in terms of collective titles, the numbers betrayed Ashraf, who will be a candidate for the title in the future, God willing.

"I did not vote even though I was nominated for it. I had a number of technical problems while I was voting. 

"Despite the intervention of the university and the Confederation of African Football, I think that someone did it in my place and I was not able to vote in the CAF awards.”

Zaki insisted that Lookman's accomplishments were more noteworthy than those of Hakimi, who had also seen success with Paris Saint-Germain.