FT 2017/18 Best African XI: RM - Wilfred Zaha

The 2017/18 season was as entertaining as any. Our African players took the European leagues by storm once more as they were taught by the legends who left a mark in these leagues as early as the 1970s. Most definitely, Mo Salah has been the talk of the town for his remarkable contribution to his club, Liverpool both in the English Premier League and the UEFA Champions League. In this piece, we are looking at the best African players to have played this season by each position and see who deserves to rub shoulders with the Egyptian King in the Starting XI. Here are our FT 2017/18 African Players of the Year lined up in a 3-5-2 formation.

RM - Wilfred Zaha [Crystal Palace & Ivory Coast]

The Crystal Palace winger has once again proved that he is the top player in English Premier League this season. Crystal Palace were in the relegation zone this season until the Ivory Coast player returned from injury and guided his team to safety. He scored 9 goals and assisted 3 in the process but these numbers do not do justice to his importance in the team. Sometimes the player is used to distract and subtract three to four players at one go and get his teammates some free space to score goals. Keita Balde of Senegal had a great season at Monaco this season but was just edged out by the 25-year old’s contribution in just 29 English Premier League games. Zaha seems to have matured ever since he returned to Crystal Palace from his short stint at Manchester United. Many rumors are suggesting that he could once again make a big move but this time to Tottenham who are looking for quality players to compete for trophies.