Qatar’s rising star Akram Afif yesterday was named Asian Player of the Year after an impressive run of form for club and country this year.
Afif, who was not present at the AFC Asian Awards ceremony held in Hong Kong, was instrumental in Qatar winning the 2019 Asian Cup earlier this year.
The Al Sadd left winger and a key national team player under coach Felix Sanchez, Afif yesterday said in a statement: “I want to thank my family, coaches, friends at Aspire Academy and more importantly my team-mates at every level for helping in my career.”
The 23-year-old added: “I could not attend the ceremony as I am playing with the national team in the Gulf Cup. This is a huge honour for me. I would like to thank the AFC for this award. My thanks also go out to the management of the Qatar national team. I cannot forget my family, who are my main supporters. This means a lot to me and I must thank all of you again for this award,” Afif said in a recorded message.
Afif also became the third Qatari player to win the prestigious award after Khalfan Ibrahim (2006) and Abdelkarim Hassan (2018).
A player with great acceleration with the ball, Afif remains a major threat to any team he faces. He scored once in Qatar’s Asian Cup title victory but more importantly he was involved in 10 goals that the national side scored during its seven-match winning streak. The young player scored five goals for Al Sadd who reached the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League this year.
Afif’s Asian Player of the Year trophy was received on his behalf by Barcelona legend and Spanish World Cup winner Xavi who captained the young Qatari at Al Sadd the last two seasons.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino handed over the trophy to Xavi as AFC President Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa warmly applauded on the stage.
“Congrats to Akram Afif. His performance was amazing. He deserved this award,” Xavi said yesterday.
“He did great for Al Sadd until we reached in the semi-finals (of the AFC Champions League). He is a great talent. He is a good guy. He is young and improving all the time. It is a pleasure to coach him. He is a big match player,” Xavi added.
When asked if a Qatari player could complete a hat-trick of AFC Player of the Year awards next year, Xavi said: “Yes, why not. Qatar players are improving all the time. This is an exciting time in Qatar football.”
Former Al Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira said: “I feel proud that I have groomed brilliant talents like of Abdelkarim Hassan and Akram Afif. I am very pleased to see the game improving in the country. Akram Afif is the best player in the Asian continent.”
QFA President Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani, who was present in Hong Kong, said: “This is a proud moment for Qatar football, for Al Sadd and for Akram Afif’s fans. He did extremely well for Al Sadd in the AFC Champions League. He had big performances for Qatar in the Asian Cup as well. Akram has a long journey ahead of him since he is only 23-year-old and we hope he achieves full ambition, whether for him personally or for the club or the national team. I would like to thank the management of Al Sadd club, Aspire Academy and QFA for their roles, but thanks to the players themselves to get to this stage.”
Mohammed Ghulam, Head of Football at Al Sadd, said: “I would like to congratulate Akram Afif on winning the award. Akram had a wonderful season and it would have been unfair if the prize has gone to any other player. Akram is a great player and has a long career ahead of him and we hope he wins this award again.”
He added: As Akram Afif said in his statement that without his fellow players, he would not have won this award. We are proud at Al Sadd that we have provided the best three players in Asia, and we will try to bring more players in the coming seasons.”
Also yesterday, Saki Kumagai of Japan won the women’s AFC Player of the Year award.
Kumagai, Japan’s captain and one of Asia’s most accomplished footballers, who captured a fourth UEFA Champions League title with Olympique Lyonnais and represented her country at the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019, said: “It is a great honour to receive this award. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who supported me, especially my team-mates in the national team and Olympique Lyonnais. They’ve helped me grow up as a footballer and their support has led me to this stage. This award will continue to motivate me to perform to the best of my abilities.”
AFC President Shaikh Salman said yesterday: “Tonight we celebrated the stars of the sport who have represented their country, clubs and the continent at the highest level. We applaud their exemplary achievements which will motivate and inspire future stars of the game.
“I must thank all the AFC Member Associations, stakeholders and to our host - the Hong Kong Football Association – for staging the AFC Annual Awards in a glitzy celebration which truly mirrors the massive success of all the award recipients.”
