African Football HQ: Who will succeed Osimhen as Prix Marc-Vivien Foe winner?

The shortlist for the Prix Mac-Vivien Foe was announced earlier this month, as France prepares to honour the best African player in Ligue 1.

In the past, the likes of Victor Osimhen, Nicolas Pepe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Vincent Enyeama and Andre Ayew have clinched the award, but who will follow in their footsteps this season.

In a recent African Football HQ Unplugged special, Ed Dove and Malek Shafei debate the favourites for the award and consider who should be named as a the Prix Marc-Vivien Foe winner in 2021.

The award, of course, is named in honour of ex-Manchester City and Olympique Lyonnais midfielder Foe, who died following a cardiac arrest while in international action for Cameroon at the 2003 Confederation Cup.

For Dove and Shafei, Lyon duo Karl Toko Ekambi and Tinotendo Kadwere are among the favourites for the award.

Kadewere has enjoyed a fantastic rise to prominence at Lyon, having impressed with Le Havre in the second tier before translating his scoring form in the second tier to the top flight.

However, the striker hit the ground running, and has already hit double figures for the 2020-21 season.

His partnership with Toko Ekambi has been a key asset for Les Gones this season, with the duo helping OL mount a sustained title challenge.

If Kadewere—with 10 goals and three assists—is a contender for the award, then so too surely is Toko Ekambi, who has 12 goals and five assists for Lyon so far this term.

For Dove, Senegal’s Boulaye Dia has to be considered one of the favourites for the prize as well.

The Stade de Reims attacker has netted 14 goals this season—putting him fifth in the Ligue 1 scoring charts—and he’s played a key role in helping the club of the Champagne region pull away from the dropzone and take their place in midtable.

Surely, at 24, Dia ought to be considered by clubs from some of Europe’s bigger leagues during the summer transfer window, and already, the likes of Newcastle United and Arsenal are reportedly considering a move for the West African.

One of the points of debate in this Unplugged episode, however, was the exclusion of Terem Moffi from the Prix Marc-Vivien Foe shortlist.

His purple patch of form at the start of 2021, when he scored seven goals in eight games, was enough to thrust him reportedly into consideration for the Super Eagles squad, although he was overlooked for the award.

Should the FC Lorient hitman have been included in the 10-man shortlist?