Winning the race ahead of his Liverpool team mate - Sadio Mane (Senegal), Medhi Benatia (Morocco), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal), and Thomas Partey (Ghana); the 26 years old Egyptian and Liverpool forward, Mohamed Salah, has been named the BBC African Footballer of the Year for the second time in two years.
The award is in recognition of his exploits and achievements in the 2017-2018 season in which he performed exceptionally for his club and led his country to the 2018 World Cup in Russia - where he scored both goals the country registered at the mundial.
Last season, he broke the premier league goals record after scoring a record 32 goals from 38 premier league matches, which saw him win the revered golden boot after a second stint in the premier league; he also scored 10 Champions League goals in the year under review.
Salah scored a total of 44 goals in 52 games for Liverpool last season - many of which were breathtaking and won goal of the month awards, including the prestigious Puskas award.
The BBC African Footballer of the year award was presented to a delighted Mohammed Salah by BBC Africa's Mimi Fawaz at Melwood, West Derby, Liverpool in the United Kingdom - home to Liverpool Football Club's training ground.
Receiving the award, Salah expressed joy and thanked the organizers, fans and all those who voted for him to win the award for a second time. He said:
"It's a great feeling to win again. I'm happy and I would like to win it also next year!" said Salah.
"There have been many good moments in 2018.
"The game against Roma at Anfield [Champions League semi-final first leg] was unbelievable. I'm scoring goals and helping the team to get the points to be top of the league. That's always a great feeling."
Salah, who played in the premier league with Chelsea left for Roma in the summer of 2017 - where he scored 15 goals and 11 assists in the 2016-17 season, which led Roma to finish second in Serie A - their best finish in seven years.
On his return to England, Salah hit the ground running, scoring 19 goals in his first 24 appearances.
In the next season, he was near perfect and beat the previous premier league record of 31 goals in a 38-game Premier League season - a record held by Luis Suarez for Liverpool in 2013-14, Cristiano Ronaldo for Manchester United in 2007-08 and Alan Shearer for Newcastle in 1995-96.
He led his club to a top four finish and the finals of the Champions League. He also inspired Egypt to the World Cup for the first time since 1990.
Asked about his aspirations for 2019, Salah said:
"[I want to] to win something with the club so everyone is excited.
"I try to push myself every day to help the team win something."
The BBC received a record 650,000+ votes this year, and Salah who has been breaking records from all corners has become the only player since Nigeria's midfield maestro, Jay-Jay Okocha to win the award in consecutive years.
Other Egyptians to have lifted the award are Mohamed Barakat (2005) and Mohamed Aboutrika (2008).
We wish him all the best and hope he wins more awards in future.
Header Image: BBC