Moroccan international football player, Bilal El Khannouss, was nominated as one of five players possibly to receive the Ebony Shoe Award 2024 (“Soulier d’Ebène”), which is bestowed every year upon the best player of African origin in the Belgian league, the KRC Genk team posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.
The attacking midfielder for KRC Genk was selected along with Mohamed Amoura (Union Saint-Gilloise), Kevin Denkey (Cercle Bruges), Mandela Keita (Antwerp), and Aboubakary Koita (Saint-Trond).
Bilal El Khannouss, aged 19, who had a strong season with Genk (3 goals and 6 assists), is one of the key players contributing to the Limburg team’s strong start in the playoffs in the Belgian professional championship.
The Moroccan player also received the Best Rookie award in the Belgian Pro League in 2023 as well as the Young Player of the Year award in Belgium.
Last year, Belgian player of Burundian origin, Mike Trésor, won the Ebony Shoe before moving from Genk to the English club Burnley. In 2022, Moroccan international player Tarik Tissoudali (La Gantoise) won the trophy.