Victor Boniface beats Dortmund’s Ian Maatsen and PSG-owned Xavi to win prestigious Bundesliga award
Super Eagles and Bayer 04 Leverkusen striker, Victor Okoh Boniface, has won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year award, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 23-year-old joined Die Werkself in August from Belgian side, Union Saint-Gilloise and immediately hit the ground running, winning the Newcomer of the Month award for August, September, October and November.
Boniface has been instrumental in Leverkusen’s record 50-game unbeaten run, scoring 13 goals and providing nine assists for Xabi Alonso’s men in the league, and got rightly nominated for the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year Award.
According to the Bundesliga official website, the Nigerian defeated on-loan Chelsea defender who plays with Borussia Dortmund – Ian Maatsen, on-loan Paris Saint-Germain midfielder who plays with RB Leipzig – Xavi Simons, and TSG Hoffeinhem’s Maximillian Beier to win the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year Award.
Rookie of the Season. 😮💨🇳🇬🦅
Victor Boniface. What a Year. 👏👏👏#Bayer04 | #BLRookie #Sorare | @boniface_jrn pic.twitter.com/Xt8i8jseC7
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) May 15, 2024
Boniface’s brilliant start to life in Germany hit a huge rock when he picked up an adductor injury that kept him out of action for three months The injury also saw the former Bodo/Glimt man miss the AFCON 2023 tournament with the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
Nonetheless, he’s been instrumental to Leverkusen’s treble charge, scoring 20 goals and providing ten assists in 32 games in all competitions. With the Bundesliga trophy in the bag, Boniface is hungry to achieve success in the Europa League and DFB-Pokal finals respectively.
Karim Adeyemi won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year award last season, but his beloved Borussia Dortmund missed out on the league title on the final matchday of the season, handing the trophy to Bayern Munich for the 11th straight season.
Adefolahan Guerreiro
Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria.
With a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience.
He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.
