PSG defender Achraf Hakimi named top African player in Ligue 1

PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi has been voted the top African player in Ligue 1 after helping his club win the title and reach the Champions League final.

The 26-year-old Moroccan won the the Marc-Vivien Foe Award ahead of Nice forward Evann Guessand, from Ivory Coast, and Strasbourg midfielder Habib Diarra, from Senegal.

The prize is named after Foe, the popular Cameroon player and two-time African champion who collapsed and died on a field in France in 2003 while playing for his country.

Hakimi, regarded as one of the best right backs in the world, scored as Arsenal was beaten 2-1 last week in their Champions League semifinal second leg.

He is the second defender to win the award after Congolese player Chancel Mbemba in 2023. He's also the fourth Moroccan, following Marouane Chamakh in 2009, Younes Belhanda in 2012 and Sofiane Boufal in 2016.

PSG is hoping for its first-ever treble. In addition to the Champions League final against Inter Milan on May 31, it faces Reims the week before in the French Cup final.

Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang won the honor in 2024.

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