Striker Nguyễn Tiến Linh has been shortlisted for the Best Footballer in Asia 2022 award. Photo goal.com

Football

HÀ NỘI — Nguyễn Tiến Linh is the only Vietnamese player to be named on the shortlist of 25 nominees for the Best Footballer in Asia 2022 award, organised by Titan Sports of China.

It is the second time in a row the Bình Dương striker has been nominated.

According to the event’s organising board, Linh played well and won the title of top scorer of the AFF Cup 2022. In the historic 3-1 victory over China in the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup, the Vietnamese striker performed well, scoring a goal to extend Việt Nam’s lead.

Linh was also a key factor in helping the U22 Việt Nam side win the SEA Games gold medal for the second time in a row in May last year.

At the club level, he scored nine goals for Bình Dương at V.League 1 2022. Through those achievements, he is also named in the top five nominations for the Vietnamese Golden Ball 2022.

Linh is one of three Southeast Asian players to compete for the award. The other two regional nominees are Thai defender Theerathon Bunmathan, who plays for Buriram United FC and Singaporean striker Ikhsan Fandi who plays for BG Pathum United FC.

Also shortlisted for the Asian 'Ballon d’Or' are superstars such as Son Heung-min of South Korea, Kaoru Mitota of Japan, Mehdi Taremi of Iran and Takehiro Tomiyasu of Japan.

The award was first organised in 2013 by China’s Titan Sports magazine. Son Heung-min has won the award seven times, in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021.

The award went to Keisuke Honda of Japan in 2013 and Shinji Okazaki of Japan in 2016.

This award is based on points and is chosen by 50 reporters and journalists representing 37 countries and regions in Asia. VNS