Cote d’ Ivoire and Manchester City midfielder, Yaya Toure has been announced winner of the 2013 BBC African Footballer of the Year Award.
Toure, who has been nominated in each of the past four years, beat Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Victor Moses, John Mikel Obi and Jonathan Pitroipa to this year’s title.
The 30-year-old thanked fans all over the world for voting for him: “I think I’ve been nominated for five years in a row and finally winning the award is amazing.”
The shortlist for the award was drawn up by 44 football experts across Africa, who based their choices on players’ skill, technical ability, teamwork, consistency and fair play.
While 2013 was not the most successful in terms of silverware for Toure – he failed to win anything with club or country but still impressed hugely with his consistently high level of performances.
Toure is having a fine start to the new English Premier League campaign. He curled in a sublime effort against Newcastle United on the first day of the season and repeated the feat against Hull in his side’s next home match. The Ivorien has scored four times direct from a set-piece so far in the league this term in a total of seven goals for his club.
This year, Toure has scored 13 goals for club and country – a very respectable figure for a midfielder. Allied to his clinical finishing, Toure’s drive and leadership have helped City to third position on the league table and was also a key figure in Ivory Coast’s successful qualification for next year’s World Cup finals in Brazil.
And in the fifth consecutive year he has been nominated for the BBC African Footballer of the Year award, Toure has finally been voted the best player on the continent.