Osimhen's success continues as he makes 12-man shortlist for Men's Best Player of the Year

SUPER Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has made it on to Fifa's12-man shortlist for the 2023 Men's Best Player of the Year as he emerged as the only African to be named in a list of the planet's best footballers.

Osimhen, 24, who scored a hat trick for Nigeria last weekend in an African Cup of Nations qualifier against Sao Tone and Principe, has been on fire over the last two seasons. He not only helped Napoli to win their first Scudetto since the era of Diego Maradona but also won the Italian golden boot in the process too.

Other players on the list include Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappé, Declan Rice, Julián Álvarez, Marcelo Brozovic, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gündogan, Rodri, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Bernardo Silva. Voting for the eighth annual awards opened on today on Fifa.com and closes in mid-October, with national team coaches, captains, journalists and fans making up the list of voters.

With his nomination, Osimhen becomes the first footballer from Nigeria to be considered for the Fifa Best Footballer Award, which Cristiano Ronaldo initially won in 2016. Last season, Osimhen won the award for the Best Striker in Serie A after outscoring Rafael Leao of AC Milan and Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan with 25 league goals.

Osimhen became the first African to win the Golden Boot in Serie A history with a record 26 league goals scored by a player from the continent in a single season. He was also named the Serie A Best Striker for the 2022/23 season as well as made the Serie A Team of the Season.

This latest nomination comes after Osimhen was nominated for the 2023 Ballon d’Or, and is another feather in the cap of the striker, who has caught the eye. Last season, Osimhen emulated Zlatan Ibrahimovic in winning the Scudetto and Capocannoniere in the same season for the first time since 2009, becoming the first African Capocannoniere in Serie A.