PSG defender Achraf Hakimi named top African player in France league

PSG defender Achraf Hakimi has been voted the top African player in the French league after helping his club win a record-extending 13th Ligue 1 title and reach the Champions League final.

The 26-year-old Moroccan won the the Marc-Vivien Foe award ahead of Nice forward Evann Guessand, from Ivory Coast, and Senegalese midfielder Habib Diarra, who plays for Strasbourg.

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The prize is named after the late Foe, the popular Cameroon player and two-time African champion who collapsed and died on a field in France in 2003 while playing for his country.

Hakimi, regarded as one of the best right-backs in the world, scored last week as PSG defeated Arsenal 2-1 in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal.

He is the second defender to win the award after Congolese player Chancel Mbemba in 2023. He's also the fourth Moroccan, following Marouane Chamakh in 2009, Younès Belhanda in 2012 and Sofiane Boufal in 2016.

PSG is hoping for its first-ever treble this season. In addition to the Champions League final against Inter Milan on May 31, it faces Reims the week before in the French Cup final.

Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang won the honor in 2024.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer