Kekana thunderbolt nominated for Fifa Puskas award

Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana will fly the South African flag at the 2020 Fifa TheBest awards after being nominated for the prestigious Puskas award.

FIFA has revealed the candidates shortlisted for seven of the individual trophies that will be presented at The Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony on 17 December and Kekana is up for top honours alongside the world’s best footballers.

Kekana dedicated his nomination to his former teammate Anele Ngcongca, who died tragically in a car accident over the weekend.

As a club we are still mourning the loss of our brother. In training we feel it. Amidst the sadness, it is difficult to process this and I have to dedicate this nomination to my brother #16 Anele Ngcongca 🙏🏿 https://t.co/UmzdhH7ysK

— Hlompho Kekana (@Hlompho_Kekana) November 25, 2020

Kekana strike nominated for Fifa Puskas award

Hlompho Kekana has scored a number of incredible goals throughout his illustrious career and his thunderous strike against Cape Town City on 20 August 2019 has received international acknowledgment after being nominated for the 2020 Fifa Puskas award.

It’s Kekana’s second nomination for the award after being shortlisted for a wonder-strike from within his own half during a match between Bafana Bafana and Cameroon in 2016.

Nominees in full:

The Best Fifa Men’s Player

• Thiago Alcântara (Spain / FC Bayern München / Liverpool FC)
• Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal / Juventus FC)
• Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium / Manchester City FC)
• Robert Lewandowski (Poland / FC Bayern München)
• Sadio Mané (Senegal / Liverpool FC)
• Kylian Mbappé (France / Paris Saint-Germain)
• Lionel Messi (Argentina / FC Barcelona)
• Neymar (Brazil / Paris Saint-Germain)
• Sergio Ramos (Spain / Real Madrid CF)
• Mohamed Salah (Egypt / Liverpool FC )
• Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands / Liverpool FC)

The Best FIFA Women’s Player:

• Lucy Bronze (England / Olympique Lyonnais / Manchester City WFC)
• Delphine Cascarino (France / Olympique Lyonnais)
• Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway / FC Barcelona)
• Pernille Harder (Denmark / VfL Wolfsburg / Chelsea FC Women)
• Jennifer Hermoso (Spain / FC Barcelona)
• Ji So-yun (Korea Republic / Chelsea FC Women)
• Sam Kerr (Australia / Chelsea FC Women)
• Saki Kumagai (Japan / Olympique Lyonnais)
• Dzsenifer Marozsán (Germany / Olympique Lyonnais)
• Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands / Arsenal WFC)
• Wendie Renard (France / Olympique Lyonnais)

The Best Fifa Men’s Goalkeeper

• Alisson Becker (Brazil / Liverpool FC)
• Thibaut Courtois (Belgium / Real Madrid CF)
• Keylor Navas (Costa Rica / Paris Saint-Germain)
• Manuel Neuer (Germany / FC Bayern München)
• Jan Oblak (Slovenia / Atlético de Madrid)
• Marc-André ter Stegen (Germany / FC Barcelona)

The Best Fifa Women’s Goalkeeper

• Ann-Katrin Berger (Germany / Chelsea FC Women)
• Sarah Bouhaddi (France / Olympique Lyonnais)
• Christiane Endler (Chile / Paris Saint-Germain)
• Hedvig Lindahl (Sweden / VfL Wolfsburg / Atlético de Madrid Femenino)
• Alyssa Naeher (USA / Chicago Red Stars)
• Ellie Roebuck (England / Manchester City WFC)

The Best Fifa Men’s Coach

• Marcelo Bielsa (Argentina / Leeds United FC)
• Hans-Dieter Flick (Germany / FC Bayern München)
• Jürgen Klopp (Germany / Liverpool FC)
• Julen Lopetegui (Spain / Sevilla FC)
• Zinedine Zidane (France / Real Madrid CF)

The Best Fifa Women’s Coach

• Lluís Cortés (Spain / FC Barcelona)
• Rita Guarino (Italy / Juventus Women)
• Emma Hayes (England / Chelsea FC Women)
• Stephan Lerch (Germany / VfL Wolfsburg)
• Hege Riise (Norway / LSK Kvinner)
• Jean-Luc Vasseur (France / Olympique Lyonnais)
• Sarina Wiegman (Netherlands / Dutch national team)

Fifa Puskas award: Kekana nominated

• Shirley Cruz (CRC) – Costa Rica v. Panama
• Giorgian De Arrascaeta (URU) – Ceará SC v. CR Flamengo
• Jordan Flores (ENG) – Shamrock Rovers FC v. Dundalk FC
• André-Pierre Gignac (FRA) – UANL Tigres v. Pumas UNAM
• Sophie Ingle (WAL) – Arsenal WFC v. Chelsea FC Women
• Zlatko Junuzović (AUT) – SK Rapid Wien v. FC Red Bull Salzburg
• Hlompho Kekana (RSA) – Mamelodi Sundowns FC v. Cape Town City FC
• Son Heungmin (KOR) – Tottenham Hotspur FC v. Burnley FC
• Leonel Quiñónez (ECU) – Universidad Católica v. CSD Macará
• Luis Suárez (URU) – FC Barcelona v. RCD Mallorca
• Caroline Weir (SCO) – Manchester City WFC v. Manchester United WFC

Members of the public will be able to vote for Hlompho Kekana on Fifa’s official website until 09 December 2020. FIFA will announce the three finalists in each of the seven categories on 11 December 2020. The awards evening is set to take place on 17 December 2020.