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Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o has been crowned African
Player of the Year for 2010 at a glittering awards ceremony in
Cairo.
Eto'o, who enjoyed little success with his country but won the
Treble with his club Inter Milan last season, becomes the first
player to win the award four times.
He finished ahead of Ivory Coast and Chelsea striker Didier
Drogba and Ghana and Sunderland forward Asamoah Gyan.
Eto'o won the award three times in a row from 2003 and his
latest success means he overtakes other three-time winners Abedi
Pele and George Weah.
The 29-year-old was an integral part of Inter's success last
term, netting 16 goals during a highly successful campaign under
then coach Jose Mourinho.
However, his exploits with the Indomitable Lions were limited as
they were bundled out early in both the African Nations Cup and
World Cup in South Africa.
In some quarters, that made him second favourite to Gyan, whose
goal-scoring exploits took Ghana to the World Cup quarter-finals,
where they were eventually beaten on penalties by Uruguay.
Gyan also helped Ghana reach the final of the African Nations
Cup, where they lost out to Egypt.
The winner of the award was decided by votes from national
coaches of the continent's 53 countries affiliated to the
Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Former Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac was named coach of the year,
the Serbian seeing off strong competition from TP Mazembe boss
Lamine N'Diaye and Egypt's Hassan Shehata.
Ghana were also voted national team of the year ahead of Algeria
and Egypt, while Udinese midfielder Kwadwo Asamoah was named young
player of the year ahead of Algeria's Ryad Boudebouz and Niger
striker Moussa Maazou.
TP Mazembe, who were beaten by Inter Milan in Saturday's FIFA
Club World Cup final, won the best club side award.
Veteran Egypt midfielder Ahmed Hassan, also the captain of the
Pharaohs, won the award for the best Africa-based player.