Eto'o set to be named African Footballer of Year again

Samuel Eto'o is expected to be named African Footballer of the Year today for the second time in a row. The Barcelona striker is the hot favourite to pip Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast and Nigeria captain Jay-Jay Okocha.

Eto'o will skip the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) annual gala ceremony in Durban in order to play in today's benefit match for the victims of December's tsunami in south east Asia.

The 23-year-old Eto'o is to line up in club colleague Ronaldinho's side against a team captained by European Footballer of the Year Andriy Shevchenko in the benefit game in Barcelona.

If he collects the CAF award, the Cameroon striker will become only the fourth player to win it in successive years, following Abedi Pele, George Weah and El Hadji Diouf.

Eto'o has scored 17 goals since joining Barcelona from Real Mallorca for a fee of €24 million last August.

For the first time, the African vote is being decided by a poll of each of the member associations of CAF.

Okocha's chances have not been helped by Nigeria's failure to vote.

CAF confirmed over the weekend that no vote had been received and Nigeria's football association president Ibrahim Galadima has promised punishment for those responsible.

Okocha, who plays for English Premier League team Bolton Wanderers, made the list of three finalists after being named the best player at the African Nations Cup finals in Tunisia.

Chelsea striker Drogba was nominated after helping his old club, Olympique Marseille, into the final of the UEFA Cup and for being named the best player in France's Ligue 1 last season.

Drogba also scored several goals as his country went to the top of their World Cup qualifying group.

Neither Drogba, also playing in the tsunami benefit match, nor Okocha are expected at the awards ceremony.