African player of the year: Nicolas Pépé votes Pape Gueye

Ivorian striker Nicolas Pépé has a clear preference for the 2026 African Player of the Year award, and it goes to his club teammate, Pape Alassane Gueye.

The Senegalese midfielder is not the name that dominates the predictions. However, he delivered a remarkable season at Villarreal, who finished 3rd in La Liga. With 5 goals and 2 assists, he contributed to the Yellow Submarine’s great run. The votes named him the best African player in the 2025-2026 Spanish championship, with 38% of the votes, ahead of Iñaki Williams and Pépé himself. The latter, at the microphone of DAZN, was also clear: the only scorer in the final of the last CAN must win the African player of the year 2026 prize, while eyes are instead turning towards Achraf Hakimi, outgoing winner, or Ismaïla Sarr.

“ He has a CV to (claim to win African Player of the Year). He was best African player of the season in La Liga, he won the CAN, he was a scorer in the final, he is performing well. So I think he has a say. And if he wins, it won’t be stolen, it will be totally deserved », assures the Ivorian.

OBN