Cameroon’s Vincent Aboubakar ended the just concluded Africa Cup of Nations campaign as the leading scorer with 8 goals.
The 28-year old former FC Porto forward fell short of equaling Democratic Republic of Congo’s (formerly Zaire) Ndaye Mulamba’s tally of nine, which stands as the record for the tournament.
With two goals apiece against both Burkina Faso and Ethiopia, and one against Cape Verde Island, Aboubakar became the first player in Africa Cup of Nations history to score five goals in the group stage.
He later added another against Comoros Island, bringing his total to six goals before the competition's quarter-final.
However, he did not score in two consecutive matches, both against Gabon in the quarter-finals and against Egypt in the semi-finals last Thursday.
The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon's captain then scored a brace after he was brought on as a substitute in the third-place playoffs against Burkina Faso, bringing his tally to eight goals — a game the hosts went on to win on penalties to capture bronze. Cameroon was trailing Burkina Faso by three goals when Abou was brought in, but a late rally meant the hosts would draw level at the death.
Aboubakar’s strike partner Karl Toko Ekambi came second with 5 goals. Cameroon managed 14 goals overall, with all goals scored by 3 players. You can bet on future games pitting Cameroon and prominent leagues, by downloading Betway’s sports betting app, to bet on the go.
He is the only other Cameroonian to win the award after the legendary Samuel Eto’o, now the president of Cameroon Football Federation.
Eto'o leads the Africa Cup of Nations scoring charts with 18 goals. Abou has 12 so far, and will be looking to close in on Eto’o’s mark in the coming edition, but that depends on whether Cameroon will qualify, and if he will still be in vying for a place in the team at 31.
Other individual award winners for the 2021 AFCON edition included Senegal’s Sadio mane who won the player of the tournament, Eduardo Mendy was recognized as the goalkeeper of the tournament after his heroics in the finals where he helped Senegal beat Egypt in the finals.
Focus now shifts to the World Cup qualifiers where Cameroon leads group D with 14 points, two ahead of Ivory Coast. All qualifiers can be accessed on the Betway sports betting platform.
Meanwhile, sources have revealed that Aboubakar is expected to make a surprise switch to the Premier League in the future, with Leicester City and West Ham United both keen.
Following his heroics at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the Premier League pair are said to be some of the clubs keeping a close eye on Aboubakar.
The Cameroonian captain is now plays for Al-Nassr FC in the Saudi Arabian top tier, but a switch to the Premier League would be welcome.
Both Premier League teams will be watching Abou’s progress after the transfer January transfer window closed recently, and are likely to make a bid during the summer transfer window.
The 2021 AFCON golden boot winner had his greatest years of his career with FC Porto in Portugal. During his six-year stay with Porto, the lanky forward scored 58 goals and added 16 assists in 125 competitive matches.
After leaving Porto in 2020, the striker joined Besiktas briefly before joining Al-Nassr last summer. In his first season at Al-Nassr, Aboubakar scored five goals in 15 league appearances. The Saudi Arabia league is available for betting on Betway and other top platforms.