Ex-international Tijani Babangida said it would be difficult for Odion Ighalo to win this year’s African footballer of the year award.

Ighalo who finished as the highest goal scorer at the 2019 African Cup of Nations is running for the top gog alongside Senegal’s Saido Mane, Egypt’s Mohammed Salah and Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez to name a few.

While evaluating the chances of Ighalo who had since quit the national team after his successful outing in Egypt, Babangida heaped praises on the striker , but believe that Mane is the favorite for the crown.

“All the nominees did well, but Mane (Saido) is ahead of them all. He scored lots of goals for Liverpool and helped Senegal reach Nations Cup final,”

“But other nominees could still be in with a chance to win it because the national team coaches and captains will decide who wins by voting, so let’s wait and see.” he said.

The current holder of the award is Mohammed Salah of Egypt and new winner would be announced in January 2020.