Ivory Coast international Nicolas Pepe has emerged winner of the 2019 Marc-Vivien Foé prize, which honours the best African player of the French topflight at the end of each season.
The 23-year-old, who plays for Ligue 1 side Lille, scored 21 goals and provided 10 assists this season.
Pépé beat competition from Tunisian Wahbi Khazri of AS Saint-Etienne and Senegalese Ismaïla Sarr of Stade Rennais FC.
Cameroonian Karl Toko-Ekambi won the prize last year.
Pépé is currently one of the hottest transfer targets in Europe, with Arsenal and Manchester United reportedly keeping an eye on the French-born Ivorian.
The prize was initiated in 2009 to pay homage to Marc-Vivien Foe, who collapsed and died while playing with the Indomitable Lions at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup in Lyon, France.
Former winners:
2009: Marouane Chamak (Bordeaux, Morocco)
2010 : Gervinho (Lille, Cote d’Ivoire)
2011: Gervinho (Lille, Cote d’Ivoire)
2012: Younès Belhanda (Montpellier, Morocco)
2013: Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang (Saint-Etienne, Gabon)
2014: Vincent Enyeama (Lille, Nigeria)
2015: André Ayew (Marseille, Ghana)
2016: Sofiane Boufal (Lille, Maroc)
2017: Séri Jean-Michaël (Nice, Cote d’Ivoire)
2018: Karl Toko-Ekambi (Angers, Cameroon)
