AFC Awards ceremony 2007

KUALA LUMPUR: AFC has released the revised second list of contenders for the coveted AFC Player of the Year award after the final AFC Cup group matches.

The latest roster of 15 players (see below) is led by three players from Uzbekistan, followed by two players each from Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait and Singapore.

The list takes into consideration MVP points since April 22, covering the AFC Champions League (two Match Days), AFC Cup (two Match days) and one AFC Asian Cup 2011 qualifier Match Day.

This list of contenders will be continually revised after the Match Days of all competitions whose MVP points count towards selection of the AFC Player of the Year.

The procedure for selecting the best player in Asia has been overhauled to inject more transparency into the process (click here for revised AFC Player of the Year 2008 criteria) with the big announcement scheduled to be made at the awards gala on November 25 in Shanghai.

SECOND LIST OF CONTENDERS FOR AFC PLAYER OF THE YEAR 2008
(in alphabetical order; revised list as of May 16, 2008)

1. Ala’a Hubail (Bahrain and Al Kuwait – Kuwait)
2. Ahmad Ajab (Kuwait and Al Qadsia – Kuwait)
3. Akmal Holmatov (Uzbekistan and Pakhtakor – Uzbekistan)
4. Ebrahim Sadeghi (Iran and Saipa – Iran)
5. Indra Sahdan Daud (Singapore and Home United – Singapore)
6. Mitsuo Ogasawara (Japan and Kashima Antlers – Japan)
7. Mohamad Al Hamwi (Syria and Al Karama – Syria)
8. Mohammad Shahril Ishak (Singapore and Home United – Singapore)
9. Nathan Burns (Australia and Adelaide Untied – Australia)
10. Rashid Saleem (Bahrain and Al Najma – Bahrain)
11. Seyed Salehi (Iran and Sepahan – Iran)
12. Timur Kapadze (Uzbekistan and Kuruvchi – Uzbekistan)
13. Ulugbek Bakaev (Uzbekistan and Kuruvchi – Uzbekistan)
14. Walied Jumah (Kuwait and Kuwait SC – Kuwait)
15. Xiangchuang Yan (China and Beijing Guoan – China)