Yaya Toure The Ivorian superstar once again had an incredible season with Manchester City in the Premier League even though they failed to claim any silverware for the first time in three seasons. Toure, however, was his usual self throughout the season and produced a string of marvelous performances in the league and the Champions League with his performance against Real Madrid at the Santiago specifically, earning him rave reviews. Toure played 32 games in the league and managed to score six goals and set up another six. Yaya added another goal in the Champions League and two in the cup to take his tally for the season to nine goals and nine assists in 40 games which is certainly a decent return for the African Player of the Year. Even though he had a good season on a personal level, Yaya Toure won't be pleased with the season's outcome of his teams as he failed to win any trophies with both Man City and his national team Ivory Coast who bowed out of the African Cup of Nations in the quarter-finals.
John Obi Mikel John Obi Mikel had a season to remember with both Chelsea and his national team Nigeria. Playing deep in midfield may not make Mikel the most coveted player on the pitch as he doesn't score or assist goals as many as strikers or attacking midfielders do, however, ask any manager who managed the Nigerian star and he'll tell you there are not many players in the world as good as the Nigerian in recent years. Mikel managed to win the African Cup of Nations after playing every minute of the competition. Moreover, the midfield engine added to his incredible hall of trophies with Chelsea -- a Europa League medal after defeating Benfica in the final. True, the Nigerian didn't score a single goal on the course of the campaign but he managed to set up eight goals in all competitions and was named on the all-star team of the tournament in both the Europa League and the African Cup if Nations.
Didier Drogba Will Didier Drogba get old one day? This is the question being asked by football fans all over the world after seeing the Ivorian star this season. On 28 January Drogba agreed to a one and a half year deal with Süper Lig team Galatasaray and earned a sign-on fee of €4 million plus basic wages of €4 million per season (plus €2 million in the 2012–13 Süper Lig) and €15,000 per match. Drogba's salary was sky high given he turned 35 in March but the Unbelievable Drogba managed to repay the faith shown in him with six goals and six assists in just 14 appearances for his new team. The former Chelsea star scored five goals in 10 outings in the league in addition to one Champions League goal that came against Real Madrid at home. Although Drogba played in Turkey for just six months he was chosen one of the best three transfers of the season which is business as usual for the evergreen Drogba.
Samuel Eto'o The Real Madrid and Barcelona legend had another incredible season with Anzhi. The Cameroonian mega star had a very good season on a personal level but wasn't able to help his side collect any silverware as they lost the Russian league to CSKA Moscow and bowed out of the Europa League at the hands of Egyptians Mohamed Salah and Al-Nenni of Basel. Eto'o managed to score 16 goals in 33 games in all competitions this season with seven of them coming in the league and nine in the Europa League which adds to his incredible tally of goals in Europe. Eto'o's profile worldwide may have dropped in recent years due to the low profile of the Russian league yet the Cameroonian legend never stopped scoring since then and doesn't look like stopping anytime soon.
Younes Belhanda The young Moroccan is quickly becoming one of the hottest properties in Europe after some dazzling performances in recent years that included leading Montpellier to the league title in 2011/2012. This season Belhanda showed the same form he showed in their title winning season but unfortunately his team was not at its best. As a result, Belhanda finished the season empty handed but was still picked for team of the season in the league. Belhanda scored 10 goals in 28 league games in addition to assisting another five. In the Champions League Montpellier failed to show their true colours as they bowed out of the group stage with the Moroccan star scoring two goals and setting up one goal in six games. That took his tally for the season to 12 goals and six assists in 35 games which is a very decent return for an attacking midfielder. Moreover, Belhanda seems to be heading out of Montpellier as top teams in Europe including Arsenal are chasing the young star.
