Kesley is leading again

VietNamNet Bridge - Brazilian-born striker Kesley Huynh Alves of Binh Duong leads the top goal scorer list and is likely to grab the nation’s Golden Boot award for highest goal scorer of the year.

Kesley has 74 points and stands in first place beating off runner-up Nguyen Quang Hai of Khanh Hoa, who scored 13 goals and has 41 points, Binh Duong teammate Nguyen Anh Duc, stands in third place, with 10 goals and 39 points, the prize organising committee told Viet Nam News yesterday.

The striker, who was granted Vietnamese citizenship last year, scored 14 of Binh Duong’s 48 goals in the national V-League premier football championship this season, which ended last Sunday.

Goals scored in the V-League, National Cup, Super Cup, First-Division are taken into account, as are goals scored at official matches organised by FIFA, the Asian Football Confederation and the ASEAN Football Federation, as well as international friendly matches from January to December.

Nguyen Minh Hung, vice chairman of HCM City Journalists Association’s Sport Reporters Club, added that the 30-year-old striker is a favourite for the prize as he tops the list of 197 Vietnamese goal scorers.

In 2005, the Brazilian-born player won top scorer and best foreign player in the V-League with 21 goals for Binh Duong.

In 2009, he was the second Brazilian-born footballer called up by the national team to a training session for the Asian Cup qualifiers.

The organising committee will officially announce the winner on December 31, while an award ceremony will be held at HCM City’s Palace Hotel in January.

The winner will walk away with a Golden Boot and a cash-prize of VND20 million (US$1,000).

Last year, Kesley won the Golden Boot award for the first time with 17 goals.

Source: VNS