Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure is in line to win the African Player of the Year award for the third consecutive year after being included in CAF's final three-man shortlist on Tuesday.

The 30-year-old will battle it out with Ivory Coast teammate and Galatasaray marksman Didier Drogba and Nigerian midfielder John Obi Mikel, who plays with English Premier League side Chelsea.

Toure is favourite to retain the award he won in 2011 and 2012, having produced a series of impressive displays with Manchester City although the Abu Dhabi-owned club failed to win any silverware this year.

He also helped Ivory Coast qualify for the World Cup for the third successive time.

Drogba won with Galatasaray the Turkish league and played a key role in their progress to the UEFA Champions League knockout phase this year, scoring twice and setting up Wesley Sneijder for the crucial goal which gave the club a 1-0 victory over Juventus in their last group-stage game.

Central midfielder Mikel won with Nigeria the African Cup of Nations and was a key player of the Chelsea side that won the Europa league.

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