BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced on Monday that Chinese player Wang Shuang has been nominated as one of the continent's female players of the year.
Wang's impressive displays for both her former club Dalian Quanjian and her country caught the eye of French giants Paris Saint-Germain, who offered the 23-year-old a two-year contract in August.
Elsewhere in the category, Australia's Samantha Kerr will be looking to clinch her second consecutive award after the Perth Glory forward guided the Matildas to a second-place finish at the AFC Women's Asian Cup in April.
Olympique Lyonnais' Saki Kumagai completes the line-up in the women's category.
The Japanese skipper was instrumental in leading the Nadeshiko to their second AFC Women's Asian Cup title in Amman earlier this year.
Kumagai, who is fondly remembered for scoring the winning penalty in Japan's 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup triumph, joined the exclusive centenary club for her country earlier this month in a 4-1 victory over Norway.
Kashima Antlers' Yuma Suzuki and Kento Misao, who were at the heart of the J League side's first-ever AFC Champions League title triumph last week, lead the nominations in the men's category, with Al Sadd's Abdelkarim Hassan completing this year's star-studded cast.
22-year-old Suzuki, who came through Kashima's youth system, distinguished himself with his all-round play and work rate, scoring twice in the AFC Champions League this season to be named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
His compatriot Misao played an equally integral part in Kashima's fairytale season. The 22-year-old was a reliable presence in midfield, breaking down the opposition's threat with an impressive tackle success rate of 70.8 percent.
The Japanese pair will face stiff competition from experienced Qatari international Hassan, who showed remarkable consistency and was a towering figure in Al Sadd's march to the 2018 AFC Champions League semi-finals.
