Classy Khribin in pole position to land Asian football’s top prize Syria star would be a deserved winner of the Asian Player of the Year award
stands out for them and could be in with a chance, especially if they overcome the Iraqis to lift the trophy.
Where Khribin sets himself apart is on the international front. The forward spearheaded the attack for an impressive Syrian national team that came within a whisker of booking an unlikely place at the World Cup. Only the post prevented Omar Al-Somah from nestling in a free-kick and knocking Australia out of the Asian playoff match.
Khribin contributed 10 goals throughout the qualifiers at a time when the likes of Al-Somah and Firas Al-Khatib were left out of the squad for political reasons until the final stages. On the domestic front, Khribin joined Al-Hilal in January, on loan from UAE side Al-Dhafra. He scored seven times in the remaining half of the 2016/17 season to help the Saudi side to a 14th league title. His goal-scoring exploits in Riyadh convinced the Saudi champions to pay out his $5 million release clause to land him permanently and he rewarded them with a rich vein of form in Asia this campaign.
We may be over a month away from the awards ceremony in Bangkok, but it is hard to look beyond Khribin for the AFC Player of the Year. And should the Syrian indeed win the award, he will make history as the first Syrian to be named Asia’s best.
“It does not make up for failing to win the AFC Champions League”, commented last year’s winner Omar Abdulrahman (pictured), reflecting on the bittersweet taste of being named Asia’s finest just days after losing the grand finale of the continent’s biggest club competition.
Khribin will be eager to avoid a similar experience as his Al-Hilal side hope to book their spot at the FIFA Club World Cup in December.