Yaya Toure (C), who won the African Footballer of the Year award Thursday, speaks during the awarding ceremony as Issa Hayatou (L), president of CAF, and Didier Drogba (R) look on in Accra Thursday. — Reuters ACCRA — Ivorian Yaya Toure of Manchester City won Africa's top football honor Thursday, beating out his countryman Didier Drogba and Alexandre Song of Cameroon for the CAF Player of the Year award. Toure, 29, claimed the prize for the second consecutive year, capping a season where he helped guide his club to the English Premier League title, its first in 44 years. His crucial double against Newcastle in May made for a dramatic chapter in City's championship bid as the club ultimately edged out bitter rival Manchester United on goal differential in a nailbitting finish. The giant midfielder appeared to tear up as his name was called at the ceremony in Ghana's capital. “I have a lot of emotion,” he said after climbing the stage to accept the award. “I think this night is so special for me.” He has been praised by City's manager Roberto Mancini for his ability to fill so many roles. Toure has voiced hope of a prolonged stay at the club and has predicted that more titles could be on the way. He also remains a crucial component of the Ivory Coast national side, a perennial contender for the African Cup of Nations crown. Ivory Coast narrowly lost to Zambia at the last continental tournament, reaching the final thanks in part to strong play from Toure, who said the side will have to win some hard contests if it hopes to reclaim the cup. “I think this this year is going to be tough. I think there's going to be a fight to be at the top,” he said after accepting the award. Toure's second CAF honor came on a night when Drogba, the former Chelsea star now playing Shanghai Shenhua, was in line for his third win. Drogba was seeking to take a step closer to to Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o's record four trophies but described his fellow Ivorian as a deserving winner who has played with impressive “consistency over the last two years.” Song, a 25-year-old up-and-coming midfielder, was nominated for the first time this year, after a season that included strong play for Arsenal before his transfer to Barcelona. Zambia was named Africa's national football side of the year. The southern African nation beat out fellow nominees Ivory Coast and up-and-comer Cape Verde, coming off its best-ever season during which it qualified for the next edition of the Cup of Nations. Zambia's Coach Herve Renard, a Frenchman credited with playing a key role in improving the side, was named Coach of the Year at the ceremony in Ghana's capital. The award for the top women's team went to Equatorial Guinea, which hosted and won the eighth African women's championship. It beat South Africa in the final, the side's second title in a competition often dominated by Nigeria, which has won six times. Equatorial Guinea's Genoveva Anoman was honored as the continent's top female footballer, after scoring six goals in the tournament. It was a night full of awards for Egypt, with Cairo-based Al-Ahly named as Club of the Year after securing its seventh CAF Champions League crown. The club's star Mohamed Abourtreika took home the award for the best player based in Africa. Egypt's Mohamed Salah, 23, was named the most promising emerging talent after scoring in three of four matches for his country's under-23 side at the London Olympics. Mahmoud El-Gohary provided the fourth Egyptian triumph of the night, winning a Legend award for a range of both club and national titles won during the 74-year-old's long professional of career. Rigobert Song, the defender from Cameroon, was also named an African football Legend, with the judges noting his two African championships. — Agencies
