How CAF Switched, Robbed Me Of 2013 African Player Of The Year Award - Mikel Obi

John Obi Mikel, the Ex-Super Eagles of Nigeria midfielder, has revealed how he was allegedly robbed of the 2013 prestigious CAF African Footballer of The Year Award.

Ivorian international, Gnégnéri Yaya Touré, was the eventual winner of the 2013 edition of the award, but Mikel has now revealed that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) switched all of a sudden to the former Manchester City forward.

Mikel was outstanding for Nigeria during the year under review as he helped the Super Eagles of Nigeria clinch the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.

Speaking in an interview, the former Chelsea central defender alleged that he was actually robbed because he had been reliably informed that he is the winner of the said award.

In his words, “I was robbed, mate. Before I went, I was told that I won it. I was at the airport flying to Nigeria, because the ceremony was in Nigeria, and guess what happened? Manchester City was playing, and Yaya scored a hat-trick or two goals.”

Nwankwo Kanu was the last Nigerian who clinched the award in 1999 beating Ghanaian defender Samuel Kuffour to the accolade following his goalscoring performance for Arsenal.