EA SPORTS has released the 100-strong nominee list of the best players from the past 12 months with Napoli striker Victor Osimhen the only Nigeria-eligible player making the cut.
Osimhen has been shortlisted after an outstanding twelve months for club and country.
The 24-year-old mustered nineteen goals and registered seven assists in 32 appearances for Napoli in 2022.
His form for The Blues was also replicated for the Super Eagles, netting five goals in two appearances in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, which makes him the highest goalscorer after two rounds.
When Osimhen found the back of the net against Atalanta on November 5, 2022, he overtook Simeon Tochukwu Nwankwo as the best Nigerian scorer in the history of the Serie A.
His impressive displays saw him pick up the Serie A Player of the Month award for March.
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar (PSG), Erling Haaland (Manchester City), Robert Lewandowski (FC Barcelona), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur) and 22 other players have also been nominated in the striker category.
The Team of the Year will be announced on Thursday, January 19, 2023.
Meanwhile, Osimhen has officially received his Globe soccer award. The Nigeria forward confirmed this on this twitter page on Wednesday.
Osimhen beat Spain stars, Gavi and Federico Valverde to bag the Emerging Player of the Year for 2022 at the Globe Soccer Award.