Â鶹Éç

by Ibrahim Sannie

On the evidence of his performances for both club and country in 2010, I am convinced that no other player deserves the 2010 Â鶹Éç African Footballer of the Year more than the Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan.

It is often the case that when players are considered for the award, those who play for top European clubs are regarded as favourites.

As such Chelsea's Ivorian striker Didier Drogba and Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o of Inter Milan will be seen by some as frontrunners for this year's gong because of the status of their clubs.

However, a careful consideration of their performances shows that their good showing was only confined to their clubs.

Gyan stands out because he was the key player for the impressive Black Stars side that finished second at the Africa Cup of Nations.

The 25-year-old scored three of the four goals that took Ghana to the final of the continental tournament in Angola in January where they were beaten 1-0 by Egypt.

He was also pivotal six months later at the World Cup where the Black Stars were the only African side to reach the quarter final of the tournament. Remember the star-studded African teams at the tournament disappointingly crashed out in the first round.

Gyan scored three goals for his country to join Senegal and Cameroon as the only African sides to have played in the last eight of the global competition.

He was also on fire for his French side, Rennes – putting away 13 goals which made him the fifth highest scorer in the Ligue 1.

Even though Gyan doesn't play for one of the big clubs in Europe, Fifa recognized his all-round impact by naming him among the 23-man shortlist for the 2010 World Player of the Year.

Now we must crown him the African king for not only bringing honour to his European club, but also to his country and continent.