Real Madrid Duo Yan Diomande and Brahim Diaz Nominated For Awards

It has been a very productive 2026 for Real Madrid forward Yan Diomande.

He started the calendar year with Ivory Coast at AFCON, and even found the back of the net in his and the team’s first game of 2026, in their round of 16 victory against Burkina Faso.

Though they were then knocked out in the next round against Egypt, the teenager immediately returned to RB Leipzig and continued to impress with his performances on both flanks.

Then, in the summer— he played a part in Ivory Coast’s first World Cup campaign since 2014, where he helped them to their first ever knockout game at the competition.

After that, Diomande got his dream move to Real Madrid, for a club record fee of around €125m, potentially rising to €140m if add ons are successfully met. 

The move to the Bernabeu is already proving to be a successful one, with the winger already registering four goals and four assists in his 14 games— and around 8.2 full games. So, nearly a goal or assist for every 90 minutes he plays. Very good.

As a result of his excellent displays across 2026, he has been nominated for Young African Player of the Year. Diomande joins fellow nominees; 

Ibrahim Maza (Bayer Leverkusen, Algeria), Christian Kofane (Bayer Leverkusen, Cameroon), Christ Inao (Trabzonspor, Fiorentina, Ivory Coast), Hamza Abdelkarim (Barcelona, Egypt), Caleb Yirenkyi (Nordsjaelland, Coventry City, Ghana), Ismael Kamissoko (Osasuna, Mali), Abdellah Ouzane (Ajax, Morocco), Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille, Manchester City, Morocco) and Ibrahim Mbaye (PSG, Aston Villa, Senegal). 

Truth be told, he can probably feel a little aggrieved not to be nominated for Player of the Year too. However, there is a Real Madrid representative for that award. Indeed so, as Brahim Diaz has been nominated for the award. 

He joins; Amad Diallo (Manchester United, Ivory Coast) Yoane Wissa (Newcastle United, DR Congo), Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth, Manchester City, Ghana), Ismael Saibari (PSV, Bayern Munich, Morocco), Achraf Hakimi (PSG, Morocco), Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace, Senegal), Pape Gueye (Villarreal, Senegal), Sadio Mane (Al-Nassr, Senegal), and Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns, South Africa) as one of the nominees. 

It has been a rollercoaster year for the 27-year old. He started the year scoring in every round of AFCON until the final, where his decisive penalty with the last kick of the game was saved, and cost Morocco the trophy. However, two months later, the tournament was retrospectively awarded to them. He then registered four assists at the FIFA World Cup as Morocco reached the quarter finals. 

Last season, Diaz did get a reasonable amount of game time at Real Madrid, but the arrival of Diomande and the more prominent role for Arda Guler means he has struggled for minutes this season, playing just 234 minutes across seven games so far this season. Still, a decent enough 2026 overall.