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Copenhagen's Amoo dedicates Caf award nomination to family and '200 million Nigerians'

Akinkunmi Amoo has dedicated his Caf award nomination to his family and '200 million Nigerians'.

The Nigeria international made the 10-man shortlist of nominees for the Young Player of the Year prize.

Also making the cut are Dango Ouattara (Burkina Faso & Lorient), Karim Konate (Cote d’Ivoire & ASEC/RB Salzburg), Jesus Owono (Equatorial Guinea & Alaves), James Gomez (The Gambia & AC Horsens), and Kamaldeen Sulemana (Ghana & Rennes).

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Others include Ilaix Moriba Kourouma (Guinea & Valencia), El Bilal Toure (Mali & Reims), Pape Matar Sarr (Senegal & Metz), and Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia & Manchester United).

The highly gifted youngster, who continues to dazzle at Copenhagen revels in the ‘surprising news’ claiming that would inspire him to do greater things.

“I am very glad to be among Caf’s list of the best young players in Africa. This piece of cheerful news has brought great joy to me,” Amoo told GOAL.

“I want to dedicate this success to my family, who always gave me the courage to move forward, to my teammates who have helped me always, to all my coaches who have sharpened my career, and most of all to the 200 million Nigerians whose love I feel every day.

“With a deep sense of humility, this nomination comes as a big surprise to me because we have so many great talents on the continent.”

Interestingly, the awards will occur two days before the final of the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations slated for the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.

While hoping to emulate Asisat Oshoala, Victor Osimhen and Alex Iwobi as Nigerians who have won this prestigious prize, Amoo feels claiming the award would help boost his footballing profile.

“Like other nominees, I want to emerge as the winner on the d-day. That would be a thing of joy and pride for me,” he continued.

“It will also boost my profile in professional football. Right now, I want to enjoy this moment because I have been getting calls from friends and family who have been sending in congratulatory messages.

“Most importantly, this nomination is a big challenge for me to keep working hard and keep pushing.”

After a one-and-a-half-year spell at Hammarby, Amoo moved to the Danish capital in a record-breaking transfer that will keep him at Parken Stadium until 2026. 

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