Liverpool's Dejan Lovren, left, and Mohamed Salah attend a training session at Melwood Training Centre, Liverpool, England, Tuesday Nov. 27, 2018. (Martin Rickett/PA via AP)
The Associated Press
CAIRO (AP) - Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has been put on a list of 34 players in the running for the African player of the year award.
The Egypt international won the award last year.
Other big-name nominees announced by the Confederation of African Football include Sadio Mane of Senegal, Alex Iwobi of Nigeria, Mehdi Benatia of Morocco, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Gabon and Riyad Mahrez of Algeria.
Madagascar striker Faneva Ima Andriatsima was also nominated and is a long-shot after his goals helped his country qualify for the 2019 African Cup of Nations, its first major tournament.
The list will be cut to three finalists and the winner will be announced on Jan. 8 in Dakar, Senegal.
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Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah controls the ball during the Champions League Group C second leg soccer match between Paris Saint Germain and Liverpool at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, left, challenges for the ball with PSG defender Marcos Marquinhos during a Champions League Group C soccer match between Paris Saint Germain and Liverpool at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)
The Associated Press
Liverpool midfielder Sadio Mane overruns PSG defender Thilo Kehrer during the Champions League Group C second leg soccer match between Paris Saint Germain and Liverpool at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang applads to fans at the end of an English Premier League soccer match between Bournemouth and Arsenal, at The Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, England, Sunday Nov. 25, 2018. (John Walton/PA via AP)
The Associated Press
Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrates scoring his side's first goal of the game against Bournemouth during their English Premier League soccer match at The Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, England, Sunday Nov. 25, 2018. (John Walton/PA via AP)
The Associated Press