PA PhotosYaya Toure and Didier Drogba tempered their African Nations Cup disappointment with respective Premier League and Champions League triumphs

Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba, Andre Ayew, Demba Ba and Alex Song are fine footballers. In the past year, they have been among the finest. And that's why they have been shortlisted for the African footballer of the year title.

Toure won the prize last year after his goal in the FA Cup final gave Manchester City their first trophy in 35 years. Another exceptional season with the club has seen him on the final nomination sheet again. He was instrumental in City's their win over Manchester United in 2011-12 and scored twice in the penultimate match of the season against Newcastle United to put them ahead on goal difference, which is ultimately how they clinched the premier league. He was also part of the Ivory Coast team that reached the final of the African Nations' Cup (ANC), but did not win it.

Drogba will give him stiff competition. He passed the 150 mark for Chelsea in this year, in terms of number of goals. The most important of them was the penalty he converted in the Champions League final, which saw Chelsea crowned continental champions for the first time. It played a role in him voted their greatest player ever in October. He did not, however, manage to do the same for the Ivory Coast.

Drogba's miss cost the country in the penalty shootout of the ANC final. Zambia emerged lifted the cup that day. Ba netted 16 times for Newcastle in the 34 matches he played last season and has already scored eight times in this one to lie joint-second on the goal-scorers list. He did not breach the goalkeeper once at the ANC though, as Senegal were knocked out in the first round. Andre Ayew was named Marseille’s player of the season and Alex Song was the second most popular player at Aresenal before breaking hearts and moving to Barcelona. Ayew scored the winner in Ghana’s ANC quarterfinal but they did not make it out of the final four.

Cameroon did not even qualify for the event so Song did not appear in the tournament and he will miss the next one because Cameroon also missed out on the 2013 competition.

Now consider Christopher Katongo, who led Zambia to a poignant victory in the Nations’ Cup. He was among the top goal-scorers in the tournament having registered his name in the scorebook three times, including in the quarter-final and the penalty shootout in the final. He single-footedly revived Zambia’s 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign when he scored the only goal in their match against Ghana. He also ensured the continental champions would be present to defend their title in South Africa in January when he scored the goal in the first-leg match against Uganda. Katongo has done more for his country than the other five combined and looked a shoe-in for the final shortlist and even the main prize. He was part of the initial 10-man shortlist but his name was nowhere to be seen when CAF trimmed it.

While Zambia haven’t said much, Ghana, who have a player nominated in Ayew, responded with outrage. Radio stations across the country fielded calls from irate fans and experts. Sports journalist Kwabena Yeboah told Joy FM it was a “shameful,” decision to exclude Katongo while others said CAF was “totally ignorant of the game it runs.” That suggestion is not far from the reality.

CAF also ignored Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who also scored three goals at the ANC as the co-hosts surprisingly topped their group to reach the quarter-finals. Morocco’s Younes Belhanda did not make the final cut either. The 22-year-old saved his country’s blushes with a goal against Niger to avoid them ending at the bottom of their group and had good season for French side Montpellier where he was moved from being a defensive midfielder into a more central position and was instrumental in their league win. He would have been the perfect balance between club and country, if CAF don’t want to place the emphasis on country alone.

On the evidence of their current shortlist, the focus is only on club and only on an overseas club, although they could be forgiven for that because they have an additional category for African-based players. But even that creates an us-and-them division that some would be uncomfortable with. Success at a European club is still what most footballers around the world dream of. African footballers are no different but that does mean that they should only be rewarded if they manage that.

Those who produce on the continent, particularly for their country, should be rightfully recognised, even in a sporting code where club achievements are often given greater due. And for that reason, Ghana is right. Chris Katongo is Africa’s real footballer of 2012.

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