Top 5 candidates for the Premier League Player of the year award
By Joshua White
With only 8 games left in the season to play, the PFA (Professional Footballer's Association) are set to ask players to vote for their player of the year for the current campaign. This article ranks the top 5 candidates to win the award, and the reasoning behind it.
The last 5 winners of PFA players, player of year
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City, 2019/20)
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool, 2018/19)
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, 2017/18)
N'Golo Kante (Chelsea, 2016/17)
Riyad Mahrez (Leicester, 2015/16)
Honourable mentions
It feels strange not having Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) in the top 5 candidates considering he currently has the second most goals in the league but 6 of those goals have been penalties. Also, this has been one of Liverpool’s worst Premier League seasons in the last 6 years which understandably pushes him down the list. Another player who is surprisingly not included in the top 5 candidates is Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), he won the award last year after equalling the all-time assist record. He has still been amazing but the other players in this list have all slightly been better for different reasons which we are going to get into.
5. Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
Ruben Dias has been an absolute revelation at the heart of Pep Guardiola defence, he currently has 14 clean sheets in 28 games and Man city have only conceded 21 goals in 31 games. He also has been key to John Stones comeback to form, there partnership was unexpected to flourish this well, but Ruben Dias has surprised many with his growing influence over the team at such a young age. The reason he is only 5th on this list is due to the fact he may win young player of year since he is eligible, this may lesser his votes and also there are a few players who have meant more to their teams this year.
4. Jack Grealish (Aston Villa)
Coming in at 4th is Jack Grealish, he has truly been one of the most entertaining players to watch this season. His stats this season are 6 goals and 10 assists which in my opinion do not give him his justice. Considering Aston villa were 1 point away from being relegated the improvement has been incredible and this is mainly due to Grealish’s impact. His impact can clearly be shown because he has missed their last 7 games and they have only picked up 2 wins and even the games they won the performances have been quite poor. Aston Villa currently sit 9th in the table and if Grealish had not got injured they could be even higher which shows his importance to the team and in my opinion get him on this list.