Wang Shuang, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain in the Division 1 Féminine, claimed the award for the first time, following an impressive year at both club and international level.

"It is a total honour for me to receive this precious award. I would like to thank the AFC. It has come as a surprise, but this award is inspiration for me to do well next year at the FIFA World Cup in France. I want to thank all my teammates - both from my club and country.

"Of course, this has been a year of great results. To secure a move to PSG, to score in the UEFA Champions League and now to win this great award. But also, this year we played in the Asian Games and personally I do feel some regret that we were not able to do better," said Wang Shuang.

"I am very glad and proud to achieve this award. Every player in the Asia dreams of winning such an award and this is a great testament to Qatar football. It is a great honour to be the second Qatari to win this award. Of course, I have to thank my teammates and I thank everyone who supported me in my career.

"I would like to dedicate this award to the Qatar FA President, and the Qatari people. Personally I did not expect to win, but this is a great source of pride for me and I am very thankful. I am still just 25-years-old, I have a long way to go, and I hope to build on this success. The three nominees did a great job this year," said Hassan.

Hasebe skippered Japan in the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia where the Blue Samurai were the only Asian team to advance to the knockout stage before suffering a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to Belgium in the Round of 16.

It was his third FIFA World Cup as Japan captain, having also skippered the side who emerged champions in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup.

Masebe, 34, announced his retirement from international football after the FIFA World Cup, having made 114 appearances for Japan.

"I am very pleased with this award. This will give me more power, more desire to do even better next year. This reminds me that I cannot stop, I must continue to give my best every time I enter the court," said Hasanzadeh.

Hasanzadeh, 31, also won the award in 2014, 2016 and 2017, surpassing compatriot Vahid Shamsaei who won the accolade in 2007, 2008 and 2015.

AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa recently presented the award to Zhang Jilong in Beijing.

The AFC’s top accolade is the perfect recognition to a man who brought calm and peace to the Confederation at a critical point in its history and is true recognition of his service to football.

Through his tireless devotion, Zhang Jilong has been instrumental in raising the standards of football in the Continent.

Born on February 9, 1952 in Yantai City in Shandong province, Zhang has dedicated more than four decades of outstanding service to sport and football.

The attacking midfielder lived up to head coach Khalid Abdullah Atawi's pre-tournament challenge to perform, which climaxed with the 19-year-old named the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018 Most Valuable Player.

Al Ammar enjoyed a successful tournament, scoring four goals, as Saudi Arabia won the AFC U-19 title for the third time.

The award is richly deserved as Takarada played a sterling role in Japan winning the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup for the first time in August.

In a Japanese side that grew in strength as the tournament progressed, Takarada contributed five goals, including one in the final which saw the Young Nadeshiko defeat Spain 3-1 with Takarada winning the Player of the Match award.