Montevideo , January 01 : Uruguayan midfielder Carlos Sanchez has been named the best footballer in South American football . Sanchez will be receiving the Rey de America trophy . The 31-year-old, who helped Argentina giants River Plate to this year’s Copa Libertadores title, received 182 votes from the region’s most renowned journalists .
Sanchez will be the first Uruguayan to win the prize since Enzo Francescoli in 1995, according to Uruguay’s El Pais newspaper.
He finished ahead of Carlos Tevez (Boca Juniors) and Miller Bolanos (Emelec).
Sanchez left River Plate to sign a three-year contract with Mexico’s Rayados de Monterrey in November.