LIVERPOOL AND MANCHESTER City dominate the Professional Footballers’ Association’s (PFA) Premier League Team of the Year, while there is a surprise inclusion for Manchester United’s Paul Pogba.
City and Liverpool have been streets ahead of the rest in the Premier League this season and are in a two-way tussle for the title with three games to go.
As such, 10 spots in the PFA’s Team of the Year are taken up by City and Liverpool players, making it the first time in the history of the combined XI that only three teams have been represented.
Raheem Sterling and Virgil van Dijk – the two favourites for the individual prize – are present, with the former joined by team-mate Sergio Aguero and the Reds’ Sadio Mane in attack.
Sterling is enjoying another marvellous season having scored 17 times and set up another 10, while Van Dijk has helped transform Liverpool into title challengers.
Ederson ends David de Gea’s four-year streak as the most-backed goalkeeper, while compatriot Fernandinho is in alongside Pogba, making it the first time two Brazilians have made it into the team in the same season.
Bernardo Silva and Aymeric Laporte complete the City contingent, while Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson – the first Scottish player to be included since Darren Fletcher in 2009-10 – slot into a Liverpool-heavy back four.
The most notable inclusion is surely that of United’s Pogba, however, with the Frenchman a regular target of criticism for a lack of consistency, particularly during the first half of the campaign under Jose Mourinho.
He soon stepped his game up under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and has 13 goals and nine assists in 33 games, but a haul of seven penalties impacts his record significantly and he has been lambasted over recent weeks for a series of underwhelming performances.
PFA Premier League Team of the Year in full:
Ederson (Manchester City); Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Aymeric Laporte (Manchester City), Andy Robertson (Liverpool); Fernandinho (Manchester City), Paul Pogba (Manchester United), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City); Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), Sadio Mane (Liverpool).
- Originally published at 09.13
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Pogba inclusion is mental but voting is February/early March when he was going well. Downed tools since. Doherty unlucky to miss out too.
@Gareth Keenan: neves is better than pogba IMO
@Eoin Murphy: Neves, Moutinho, Hazard, Salah, Erikson, Maddison, Fraser, Sigurdsson …there’s a long list of players that should be in there ahead of Pogba, he’s had about 8 decent games all year
@COYBIG: its a makey upey team.
@Gareth Keenan: Pogba is included as a way to teach kids that even rubbish players have a chance :-)
@COYBIG: Fraser for sure
@Gareth Keenan: does anyone know why the voting is so early in the season?
@COYBIG: hazard has been terrible most of the season
Actually thought Son might sneak in. He’s carried Spurs at times this season
@Eamonn O Connell: VERY underrated
@Eoin Murphy: I think maybe a year ago he was underrated, everyone knows what he’s capable of now, he’s in the top 10 players in the league I’d say
@Stephen Lyons: Well obviously judging by the players’ choices he’s not, but he’s in my top 10!
@Eamonn O Connell: I said the same a few weeks back. He has had a brilliant season this year…hard to argue with the rest of the team.
@Eamonn O Connell: son missed half the season through injury and the Asian games. He played about 8 games where he was excellent.
If there ever was evidence that footballers were thick the inclusion of Pogba is it.
Strange no Hazard or Tottenham players even
Pogba!? Honestly is it any surprise he has such a mega ego
Pogba or TAA should not be there. Wan Bissaka or Doherty all day for right back.
@William Boland: Taa has around 12 assists all season and a couple of goals and is playing in the meanest defence in the league, to suggest wan bissaka ahead of him is absolutely ridiculous. Doherty can probably count himself a little unlucky but wan bissaka is just pure bollo#ology
@William Boland: what color is the sky in your world….
@Peter Govan: Trent only has 8 premier league assists.
@Niall Mc Gourty: That all, must have a few in champions league so
Pogba looked like someone who won a competition to play in a Manchester Darby last night.
@Robert Clifford: That’s comment of the year for me
Allison
Doherty , Vertonghen, Van Dijk, Robertson
Bernardo Kante Neves
Sterling Salah Mané
IMO
@Kazoochka: Allison should be in the actually team just based on less goals conceded alone.
Thought Ederson didn’t have as good a season as last year, even though he has been great this year too.
Haha they are obviously having a laugh
Doherty unlucky but Trent’s been on fire this season think he has 10 or 11 assists likewise with Robbo. Unlucky on Hazard Salah and Son
@Ollie Watson: and Allison is miles ahead for keeper
@Ollie Watson: Doherty has been robbed, hes scored 8 and assisted 9. He has been better defensively too.
What the f…
Doherty very unlucky,given his amount of goals and assists this season as well as the fact he has adjusted to the PL so quickly with utter consistency makes it very disappointing.
Pogba aside it’s hard to argue with that team, yes there are others who could justifiably be selected; Allison, Dunk, Doherty, Son, Hazard, Neves, Rice, sigurdsson, Kane and maybe Salah but his form has only improved after the votes were cast. I think the only nailed on certainties were Van Dijk, Laporte, Robertson, Sterling, Aguero,
And no Doherty. I thought he was constant all season. But you put Pogba. Shows how poor the system is.
Pogba is the joke of the year
Well if you want to undermine an awards event and demean their significance then naming a Guy like Pogba is a good starting point .
If he has any football professionalism gene still within in his ego, then he should decline it.
Does anyone know why they have the vote so early in the season?
Why aren’t votes cast at (or nearer) the end of the season? It makes no sense to vote for a player of the season with a third of it left.
@Alan McArdle: agree totally. As is everything I’m guessimg money comes into play. Inflated prices on payers, endorsements etc. That’s just a guess. But your usually not far off when assuming money is a factor.
A sick twisted joke .
I will never understand why these things can’t wait until the day after the season is finished.
They are just a distraction to the real business.
Pogba inclusion was to appease to United die hards. They need to get a good price for him during the summer…
I can’t believe X was included. Y and Z should have made the list. And B is a better goalie than C any day. What could the people who made up this list have been thinking?
Son and Digne both very unlucky
McTominay over LAZY Pogba all day long. De Bruyne must be in there even if he missed a load of games. The best after all. Hazard too should be close.
@El_Monikerinho: pogba 1st at united for ground covered this season. Not that lazy clearly.
Im blinded by his ego…
Pogba, they are having a luagh. This is as farcical as the Damian Rice award for young Irish player of the year.