West Ham 26-year-old shortlisted for major award, set for historic double

By Amir Mir

West Ham forward Andre Ayew has been nominated for the BBC African Footballer of the Year award.

BBC Sport have named the 26-year-old Ghana international on a five-man shortlist where he will be competing for the top prize among other high quality contenders.

Premier League trio Riyad Mahrez, Yaya Toure, and Sadio Mane have been named on the list too, alongside Borussia Mönchengladbach striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Hammers attacker Ayew, who made a £20 million summer switch from Swansea, is yet to score for his club this season, but he missed the start of the season through injury and has only just started his return.

Former Marseille player Ayew broke onto the Premier League scene last season when he helped his former club survive relegation.

Ayew scored 12 goals and provided five assists in his debut season at the Liberty Stadium, which attracted the interest of Slaven Bilic's side.

The Ghana international, who won the same prize in 2011, is now looking to surpass the feat of his father Abedi Pele Ayew, who won the award in 1992.

Only three other players have won the award twice, Nwankwo Kanu (1997, 1999), Jay-Jay Okocha (2003, 2004) and Yaya Touré (2013, 2015).

In other West Ham team news, supporters on Twitter hailed Dimitri Payet as he scored the winning goal for France.