Moses Hoping for Victory in Footballer of the Year Race

There are still six weeks left in the calendar year, but end-of-year plaudits are beginning to roll out in their myriad permutations. Earlier this week, the BBC revealed its five player short list for the BBC African Footballer of the Year award, and loanee Victor Moses was amongst the nominees drawn up by 44 journalists across Africa.

"2013 has been an unbelievable year for me," Moses said. "It was my first time playing a competition with Nigeria and travelling with the team, so I was delighted that we won the Nations Cup in South Africa.

"Then with Chelsea, we won the Europa League and I felt I had a really good season so to wrap it up with silverware was nice."

Moses' nomination comes largely due to efforts displayed prior to his arrival on Merseyside, but a continental-level acknowledgement of his skills at the tender age of twenty-two is sure to provide a nice emotional boost for the player ahead of Nigeria's World Cup qualifying match against Ethiopia on Saturday.

The remaining four nominees are Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon), Chelsea's John Obi Mikel (Nigeria), Rennes' Jonathan Pitroipa (Burkina Faso), and Manchester City's four-time nominee and perpetual transfer window crush Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast).

Fans can vote online for their preferred winner on the BBC's website until November 25.

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