The year 2024 is coming to an end and the African Golden Ball is fast approaching. We will know the big winner on Monday December 16. Several players are in the race to win this trophy, here is the editorial selection.
5. Ronwen Williams
My little darling! Still unknown at the start of the year, the South African goalkeeper has had an incredible year. The latter particularly stood out with a remarkable CAN. He almost single-handedly took South Africa to a very good third place. The icing on the cake was that he won the trophy for best goalkeeper in the competition. And that's not all, Ronwen Williams has been named among the ten contenders for the Lev Yashin Trophy. Just that.
However, for the final victory or even the podium it seems compromised. The 32-year-old goalkeeper plays for Mamelodi Sundowns, in the South African championship. A very good club from the African continent, certainly, but the latter does not give it enough visibility. With his team, he won the African Football League for its first edition. A great reward but insufficient to aim higher. He fully deserves his place in this top 5 even if he seems a little short of winning the trophy.
4. Simon Adingra
Yes, how to do this ranking without dragging an Ivorian! The Elephants won the AFCON at home and well deserve to have a player represented and who better than Simon Adingra for that. At 22 years old, he is one of Brighton's gems. The latter needed a loan from Union Saint-Gilloise to come to the forefront. In total, he scored 15 goals and provided 12 assists, performances opening the doors to the selection for him.
He is now back at Bridgton and has played extensively under Roberto De Zerbi, the current OM coach. During the CAN, Simon Adingra led his team to the title. His memorable final against Nigeria with two assists will go down in history. However, his club performances remain fragile and this could cost him dearly.
3. Ashraf Hakimi
Already on the podium last year, the PSG full-back intends to do it again this year. His season is once again more than honorable. Champion of France, winner of the Coupe de France, third in the Olympic Games and a level of play that remains as impressive as ever.
The only small problem was his failure in the two major competitions he competed in. First in club with PSG. The capital club ended in the Champions League semi-final against Borussia Dortmund. One more elimination… As well as in selection, indeed, the Atlas Lions CAN is a failure. A defeat in the round of 16 against South Africa. Be careful though, Hakimi remains a serious contender for this trophy.
2. Serhou Guirassy
How not to mention the Guinean goleador in this ranking. This year is synonymous with an explosion for the former Amiens Serhou Guirassy. The latter was the terror of Bundesliga defenders. With his former team Stuttgart, surprise guest on the podium in Germany, he exploded his goal counter with 28 goals in…28 matches. Only Harry Kane did better.
He is the great architect of his former team’s qualification for the Champions League. He then joined Dortmund and the Guinean slowly but surely made a place in the Ruhr. In selection, he obtained an honorable quarter-final during the CAN. The only downside in this magnificent year was no title won. It remains to be seen whether this will be detrimental to him.
1 Ademola Lookman
Let's finish with the big favorite for this African Golden Ball: Ademola Lookman. The Nigerian is having an XXL season. First of all, there was a huge disappointment with Nigeria's defeat in the CAN final against Ivory Coast. Despite everything, the Atalanta striker showed an impressive level of play during this competition.
If his moment of glory with the Super Eagles never arrived, at club the story is quite different. Arriving in 2022 at Atalanta Bergamo, he has established himself as a centerpiece of Gian Piero Gasparini's team. His level of play is breathtaking, he exceeds the 10 goal mark in Serie A each season and allows the Bergamasques to take the top places in the ranking. This was rewarded with a victory in the Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen. The Nigerien scores a hat-trick and bursts the screen. He was expected to join PSG but ultimately stayed in Italy and it worked out for him, his start to the season is more than convincing. He is quite logically the big favorite for the African Golden Ball.
We will still have to wait 5 more days before knowing who will succeed Victor Osimhen. The suspense is at its peak!
