Player Of The Year

CAF Player of the year 2017 - Salah, Mane & Aubameyang to fly to Ghana

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah made the final shortlist for CAF's 2017 African Footballer of the Year.

Salah and Mane have scored 22 Premier League goals between them so far this season

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says it is a matter of "respect" to allow Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to go to an awards night in Ghana 24 hours before the FA Cup game against Everton.

The attacking duo are on a three-man shortlist for the Confederation of African Football Player of the Year award which will be named on Thursday.

"We sleep in a hotel, they sleep in a plane.

That is all the difference," said Klopp.

"We have to show them respect."

The awards take place in Accra on Thursday evening with Liverpool kicking off against local rivals Everton.

Klopp says that his experience of managing the third nominee - Borussia Dortmund and Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - during his time at the German club means he understands the importance of the awards.

"If it had been a matchday they wouldn't have asked," he added.

"For our side, it is just a sign of respect.

"I had Aubameyang and there is nothing more important than to go there."

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) final shortlists

Liverpool duo of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are joined by Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on the three-man list.

Egypt's Salah has already won the 2017 BBC African Footballer of the Year award, while Gabon's Aubameyang won the CAF award in 2015.

Senegal's Mane has been included in the CAF Team of the Year for 2015 and 2016.

The list was cut from 11 nominees that CAF announced in November.

Hugo Broos, who led Cameroon to the Africa Cup of Nations title in February, missed out on the final three-man list after being named among the original five nominees.

That left Egypt coach Hector Cuper, Nigeria boss Gernot Rohr and L'Hussein Amoutta of Wydad Casablanca in contention for the award.

Last year's winner Riyad Mahrez of Algeria and Leicester City missed out on the original list of nominees.

CAF also released the shortlists for several of its other award categories, which will be handed out on 4 January in Accra, Ghana.

African Player of the Year 2017:

Mohamed Salah
(Egypt and Liverpool)

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
(Gabon and Borussia Dortmund)

Sadio Mane
(Senegal and Liverpool)

Women's Player of the Year

Asisat Oshoala
(Nigeria and Dalian Quanjian)

Chrestina Kgatlana
(South Africa and UWC Ladies)

Gabrielle Aboudi Onguene
(Cameroon and CSKA Moscow)

Women's National Team of the Year:
• Ghana U-20
• Nigeria U-20
• South Africa