Neill, Schwarzer nominated for AFC gongs

Socceroos captain Lucas Neill has been nominated for the AFC Player of the Year award, while Mark Schwarzer is also up for an honour.

Neill has been nominated for the Asian Football Confederation’s highest honour alongside Iran’s Ali Karimi and Mohsen Bengar, as well as Zheng Zhi of China and Korea Republic’s Lee Keun-ho.

The AFC Player of the Year award remains a controversial prize as only players who can attend the presentations, which this year will be held in Kuala Lumpur on November 29, can win.

Neill, who plays for Al Wasl in the United Arab Emirates, will become Australia’s second-ever winner of the award if he triumphs, after fellow Socceroos defender Sasa Ognenovski was named the AFC Player of the Year in 2010.

Schwarzer is one of three nominations for what is, arguably, the more prestigious AFC International Player of the Year.

The 40-year-old goalkeeper, who plies his trade with Fulham in the English Premier League, will be up against Japanese pair Shinji Kagawa and Yuto Nagatomo, who play for Manchester United and Inter Milan respectively.