Abhranil Roy
It’s that time of the year again, when the PFA releases the nominees for the Player Of The Season Award. The English league has seen many unlikely standouts this season, most notably players from Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspurs. The trio of Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez and NGolo Kante have all been exceptional this season and deserve their spot on the final nominees list. Harry Kane has had yet another brilliant season and currently leads the goalscoring charts in the League with 22 goals, so there is no question about his presence either. The last 2 names of the list have however drawn flak, as Spurs’ fans say that their centre-back Toby Alderweireld has been a lot more consistent and effective than Arsenal’s playmaker Mesut Ozil, while United fan’s say that the exclusion of the likes of David de Gea and Anthony Martial to include Liverpool’s attacking midfielder Phillipe Coutinho is shocking to say the least. How valid is their argument? Let’s find out.
Coutinho:
The Brazilian playmaker has had a very good season, making 33 appearances in the Premier League and scoring 5 and setting up 7 goals. He has completed 1180 passes this season with a pass accuracy of 81%, of which 78% were forward passes. In general, Klopp’s team has looked extremely dangerous whenever the front trio of Coutinho Firmino and Sturridge has clicked, as we saw in the Europa League first leg against United where they ripped the Red Devil to shreds with their high pressing, quick passing game. Phillipe often serves as the focal point of Liverpool’s counter attacks, but he is not consistent at all. At 23 years of age, he still has time to improve on his obvious qualities, but on the basis of the current season, there are surely more suitable candidates than him.
Martial and De Gea’s seasons:
Anthony Martial and David de Gea have been two bright spots in an otherwise wretched season for United. The French teenager, who came in last summer has notched up 14 goals and 5 assists in his debut season and has silenced all his critics. He has quick feet and great composure, qualities which are very rare in a player so young.
De Gea on the other hand, has been making save after save this season, and has probably won 4 or 5 matches this season and helped us to avoid defeat in many more. The Spaniard has been in scintillating form once again, and given his ball distribution is probably one of the best in the world, he has started off many a United counterattack too.
Fan verdict:
Both Martial and De Gea have had far more impactful seasons than Coutinho, and it seems weird and painful to not see their names on the list. I simply did not understand how the PFA came up with Coutinho on this list, to be very honest.
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