Hannibal Mejbri’s meteoric rise appears to be showing no signs of slowing down. When the youngster reflects on the past 12 months, he will likely reflect on choosing Tunisia over France as the best decision he could have made.
After starring at the recent FIFA Arab Cup, Hannibal has joined up with Tunisia for the upcoming AFCON tournament, before heading back to Manchester United for the last few months of the season.
Hannibal’s recent performances for Tunisia certainly caught the eye, as he won the man of the match award in the Arab Cup semi-final against Egypt.
Now he has been further awarded for his progress. Hannibal has won the Africa d’Or 2021, a poll run by Foot-Africa.com for the ‘revelation of the year’.
The website reports more than 469,000 votes were cast, with Hannibal amassing 55 per cent of them, beating Algeria prospect Adem Zorgane (35%).
A bright talent to be excited about
Hannibal’s involvement for Tunisia at the AFCON will make him likely to stay at United later in the season rather than heading out on loan.
This potentially is a good development, with manager Ralf Rangnick recently appearing to confirm he considers him to be a first team option.
Rangnick told the club website: “I’m fully aware that we have another good, highly-talented player coming from our youth ranks and hopefully after the Africa Cup of Nations he can regularly train and be part of our group.”
Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata could be moved on during the January transfer window, which helps clear the pathway for Hannibal in the first team.
Anthony Elanga has recently become a regular, and the pair’s link-up at under-23 level could come in useful for both players.
First the youngster must negotiate the AFCON, with Tunisia’s tournament kicking off on January 12 against Mali, followed by group games against Mauritania and Gambia.
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