Ashalata Devi nominated for AFC Player of the Year

Indian women's national team captain Loitongbam Ashalata Devi has been named among the three nominees for the AFC Player of the Year in the women's category.

Ashalata joins Li Ying of China PR and Japan's Saki Kumagai in the three names nominated for the award.

Ashalata has enjoyed an impressive year by leading India to the Olympic 2020 Qualifiers Round 2 and winning the 2019 SAFF Championship title.

The defender was also instrumental in helping her club, Sethu FC, win the Indian Women’s League (IWL) crown. She was subsequently voted as the Women’s Player of the Year for the 2018-2019 season by the All India Football Federation (AIFF).

Her competitors, Ying and Kumagai, have contributed immensely to their respective national teams and club sides.

Li, the top scorer in the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, guided China PR to the Round of 16 in the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France this year.

Kumagai has been a force in women’s football after guiding Japan to the Round of 16 in the World Cup this year, and she also helped Lyon win its fourth consecutive UEFA Women’s Champions League title which led to her nomination for this year’s BBC World Women’s Football of the Year award.

-- AIFF earns nomination too --

Meanwhile, the governing body of football in India, the AIFF, too earned a nomination as it was named among the three federations in AFC President Recognition Awards for Grassroots Football (Developing) category.