France-based Paris Saint-Germain goalpoacher and Malawi Scotchers skipper Tabitha Chawinga has been crowned the Division One (D1) Player of the Month award for the second time running in a roll.
The Malawian treasured football international export has deservedly won the Division One (D1) player of month for the month of March and she also scooped the player of month in February.
She is the first Malawian and the second African to win the D1 player of the month.
The Rumphi born striker is also in line vying for the title of best player of the season with team-mate Grace Geyoro and Lyon’s Lindsey Horan at the D1 Trophies to be awarded on Monday 29th April.
Speaking through her manager, Theana Anastancia Msolomba, she said: “I am happy that I have won this award for the second time in a roll and I would like to thank God for the talent and the gift of life, and my parents for believing in me and my dreams.
“The success at PSG has been possible because of the support from the teammates, the supporters and the club. I will keep working hard,” she said.
The Malawian international has scored six goals and provided four assists in the four matches she played during the month, received 54% of the votes, ahead of Paris FC goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie (24%) and the PSG midfield maestro and captain, Grace Geyoro who amassed just 22% of the votes cast.
Tabitha Chawinga is currently the D1 top scorer with 17 goals and 10 assists provider and her nomination was her fourth of the season and third in a row, retains her trophy to claim the tenth trophy for a player from the French capital club since the trophy was created at the start of the 2020-2021 season, a record tied with Olympique Lyonnais.
D1 Feminine award
The first African to win the award is Ivory Coast international player, Kadidiatou Diani who won the inaugural award in 2020-2021 season.
Maëlle Garbino, a versatile footballer at FC Girondins de Bordeaux has won the award a joint-record three times alongside PSG’s French prolific striker and PSG’s all time top goal-scorer, Marie-Antoinette Katoto who is also the first player to win the award in consecutive months
The Division 1 Féminine Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Division 1 Feminine player each month of the season.
The award was created by French Football Federation in September 2020 with the support of league’s title sponsors Arkema and television right holders Canal+.
It is currently known as D1 Arkema Player of the Month due to sponsorship reasons.
In October 2021, UNFP joined other sponsors to become a partner of the trophy.
The winner is chosen by a combination of votes from players of Division 1 Féminine clubs and online public vote.
Le Parisienne’s Tabitha Chawinga is the most recent player to receive award having won the award in February and March 2024.
Tabitha Chawinga, born 22 May 1996 in northern Malawi is a Malawian professional footballer, who plays as a forward for D1 Féminine club Paris Saint-Germain and she is currently on loan from Chinese side Wuhan Jianghan University.
Chawinga also played international club football for a top Swedish outfit, Damallsvenskan where she was a top goal scorer and she was crowned Sweden’s forward of the year in 2017.
She also plied her trade in Serie A women’s league where she bagged 23 goals in 23 matches for Inter Milan in taly where she also emerged the top goal scorer of the league.
Chawinga, who has a young sister, Temwa, now playing in America, a goal-scoring machine and is last season’s world’s overall top goalscorer surpassing the likes of Erlin Halaand, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Christiano Ronaldo, also plays for and captains the Malawi women national team, which is known as the Scotchers.
“I WILL KEEP WORKING HARD.”
Tabitha Chawinga
PSG forward