Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo will battle Yaya Toure of Manchester City and Sadio Mane from Southampton for the English Premier League African Player Award for October.
Ighalo’s goals have seen his promoted Watford hold their own in the English top flight.
Previous Nigeria winners of this award have included Chelsea midfielder Mikel Obi.
Awards director Tunde Adelakun noted the unrelenting performance of previous winners, which showed that their award recognition was no fluke.
“Riyad Mahrez has been a revelation in this league and he keeps getting better and better,” Adelakun said.
“We have also seen great showings by our August winner Andre Ayew and his brother Jordan who seems to be settling down now, albeit in challenging circumstances in his club.”
Fans, African football followers and journalists are expected to cast their votes for their choice of the eventual winner, which will be announced very soon.