Lookman and Banda named African players of the year

Ademola Lookman and Barbra Banda were respectively anointed on Monday night as the Confederation of African Football's men's and women's player of the year at a lavish awards ceremony in Marrakech. Lookman, 27, emerged as one of the favourites for the prestigious trophy for his performances in the Nigeria national team on the way to the final at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations at the start of the year.He boosted his chances with a hat trick for his Italian club side Atalanta in the 3-0 win over B