Jamaican superstars Leon Bailey and Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw have both been shortlisted in the male and female categories for the Concacaf Player of the Year Awards, following their exploits for both club and country in the 2023–24 campaign.
The nominees, who were selected for the coveted Confederation Award based on performance statistics and the input of football experts, were announced on Tuesday as fan voting also opened to allow football enthusiasts to vote for their favourite players.
To be eligible to be shortlisted, players must have played for a Concacaf Member Association's senior Men's or Women's national team in eligible Concacaf and FIFA competitions and matches. Additionally, regardless of nationality, players must have represented a club in the 2023–24 season in a Concacaf and FIFA-sanctioned top division Men’s or Women’s professional league in the Concacaf region.
Bailey, 26, had a superb season with English Premier League (EPL) outfit Aston Villa last season, in which he earned a few Player of the Month awards. He scored 10 goals and registered nine assists to help the club to a fourth-place finish in the league.
Though his appearances, or lack thereof, on the international scene were marred by controversy, the dynamic winger did enough to make the shortlist, which also includes Adalberto Carrasquilla of Panama and Houston Dynamo.
Jonathan David of Canada and French club Lille; Canada’s and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies; Santiago Gimenez of Mexico and Feyenoord; and American Christian Pulisic, who also represents AC Milan, are the other nominees.
Meanwhile, Reggae Girlz and Manchester City striker Shaw, had an unforgettable 2023–24 season in which she was named the 2023–24 Barclays Women’s Super League (WSL) Player of the Season and was named the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Women Footballer of the Year.
The 27-year-old, whose season was cut short due to a broken leg, registered 21 goals in just 18 appearances and also provided three assists.
Shaw was the first player to score three WSL hat-tricks in a calendar year last year, and between November 2023 and January 2024, the forward again registered three trebles in just four matches.
Finding the net in both WSL Manchester derbies, the Jamaican’s clinical finish at the Etihad Stadium in March also saw her become City’s record goalscorer, as she swept past Georgia Stanway in the process.
By all indications, Shaw, who won the Concacaf Player of the Year award in 2022, seems set to repeat the feat on this occasion, but she will have five other nominees to contend with.
They are Charlyn Corral of Mexico and Pachuca Femenil; Haiti’s Melchie Dumornay of Olympique Lyonnais; Adriana Leon of Canada and Aston Villa women; Mexico’s Jacqueline Ovalle of Mexico and Tigres Femenil; and American Sophia Smith of Portland Thorns.
The voting process, which includes players, coaches, media, and fans, will determine the winners.
A total of 100 votes will conclude the process, with 41 votes to be cast by Men’s national team head coach—one for each Concacaf Member Association—and 41 Men’s national team captain with the same stipulation.
One vote each for the nine representative members from the Concacaf region will make up the nine media votes, while the remaining nine van votes will come through www.concacaf.com/awards. The player with the most fan votes will receive four votes in the overall voting process, second place three votes, and third place two votes, regardless of how many people vote online.
The process is the same for the Women’s award.
At the conclusion of the voting period, on August 2, the player in each category with the most votes out of the 100 available will be named 2023/24 Concacaf Men’s and Women’s Players of the Year.
Argentina 2-2 Morocco: Medina scores 106th-minute leveller as Albiceleste fight back
Cristian Medina equalised 16 minutes into second-half stoppage time as Argentina fought back for a 2-2 draw with Morocco in their opening game at the Olympic Games in Saint-Etienne.
Morocco looked set to open their Group B campaign with a memorable win when Al Ain striker Soufiane Rahimi scored twice in a five-minute spell either side of half-time.
However, substitute Giuliano Simeone halved the arrears for Javier Mascherano's men, who twice hit the woodwork before Medina nodded home with the final contribution to an incredible game.
Morocco inched ahead two minutes into first-half stoppage time, Ilias Akhomach bamboozling the Argentina defence with a wonderful backheel that allowed Bilal El Khannouss to cross for Rahimi to tap home.
Within four minutes of the restart, Morocco had a chance to double their lead as the tricky Akhomach was pushed inside the area by Julio Soler. Rahimi stepped up to the spot and made no mistake, stroking his kick into the bottom-left corner.
Mascherano's team dragged themselves back into the contest with 22 minutes to play, though, as Soler's cross-shot was prodded in by the stretching substitute Simeone.
The Albiceleste struggled to carve out clear-cut chances to equalise, but Medina saved the day in dramatic circumstances with 116 minutes on the clock.
Munir Mohamedi spilled Thiago Almada's long-range shot then tipped Bruno Amione's follow-up onto the woodwork. Nicolas Otamendi then looped his header against the crossbar but Argentina made sure at the fourth attempt as Medina nodded into an unguarded net.
Data Debrief: Albiceleste leave it late
Medina's leveller was officially timed at 105 minutes and 24 seconds, the lengthy period of stoppage time a result of several heavy challenges and a number of supporters encroaching on the playing field throughout the match.
Few could argue they did not deserve their point, though, having ended the game with a tally of 2.41 expected goals (xG) to Morocco's 1.46.
Uzbekistan 2-1 Spain: Gomez rectifies penalty miss to get La Roja up and running at Paris Olympics
Sergio Gomez led Spain to a winning start at the Paris Olympics, making amends for his penalty miss to score the winner in Wednesday's 2-1 win over Uzbekistan.
La Roja took the lead through Marc Pubill, only for Uzbekistan captain Eldor Shomurodov to level from the spot before the break.
Gomez would see his own spot-kick attempt saved, but dusted himself down to net the decisive goal for Santi Denia's side.
A teasing free-kick delivery from the left-hand side was flicked on at the near post by Abel Ruiz, with Pubill providing the telling touch to give Spain the lead in the 28th minute.
However, Timur Kapadze's side drew level in the third minute of injury time when a VAR review saw Pau Cubarsi penalised for a pull inside the box, with Shomurodov firing beyond Arnau Tenas.
Spain were rewarded for a bright start to the second half when Aimar Oroz was tripped by Abbosbek Fayzullaev.
Gomez assumed responsibility but saw his effort brilliantly saved. However, he atoned for his error three minutes later as he swept home from Juan Miranda's inviting cutback.
Uzbekistan had the opportunity to snatch a first point at the Olympics late on, only for Umarali Rahmonaliyev to slice his shot wide in the sixth minute of injury time.
Data Debrief: A mixed bag for La Roja
Former Manchester City defender Gomez was the standout for Spain, registering more shots (three), more shots on target (three) than anyone on the pitch, finishing the encounter with an xG of 1.01.
Barcelona youngster Cubarsi endured a difficult afternoon having given away a penalty, but was strong in possession, completing 54 of his 57 passes (94.7%).
Despite registering six shots on target from the eight they attempted, Spain underperformed their expected goals (xG) by 0.60, something that will need to improve should they want to win a second gold medal.
Fati woes continue as Barcelona forward suffers foot injury in training
Barcelona forward Ansu Fati has suffered a foot injury during a pre-season training session after returning from an underwhelming loan spell at Brighton and Hove Albion.
Hopes were high for Fati when he enjoyed a breakout 2019-20 season, eventually being handed the Blaugrana's iconic number 10 shirt when Lionel Messi departed in 2021.
However, he has struggled with injuries in the ensuing years, making a total of 21 starts in La Liga from the start of 2020-21 to the end of 2022-23.
Fati joined Brighton on loan last season in a move widely viewed as a coup for the Seagulls, but he only started three league games for the club, totalling 514 minutes across 19 appearances and scoring twice.
He has now been prevented from travelling to the United States for Barca's pre-season tour, which features fixtures against Manchester City, Real Madrid and Milan.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the club said: "In Tuesday's training session, first-team player Ansu Fati suffered a foot injury.
"He will undergo conservative treatment in Barcelona and his return to training will be determined by his recovery time."
Fati has expressed a desire to stay with Barca, where he has a contract until 2027, though he has been linked with a move to Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce in recent weeks.
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