Best player Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice were the driving forces in Arsenal’s midfield that pushed Manchester City all the way, and William Saliba excelled in the division’s meanest defence while barely breaking sweat. The blistering late-season form of Cole Palmer, Ollie Watkins and Michael Olise also deserve a mention, although it’s hard to look past City’s two most influential players this season: Phil Foden and Rodri . Foden came of age in the lengthy absence of an injured Kevin De Bruyne and has deservedly been crowned player of the year by the Premier League and Football Writers’ Association .
Rodri was mystifyingly left off the shortlist for the former but his achievement of going the season unbeaten in a City shirt, other than in a game lost on a shootout, underlined his importance to everything they do. Ed Aarons Rodri continues to be unstoppable and Saliba is a fine defensive leader but Cole Palmer has delivered one of the all-time breakthrough seasons. Only Erling Haaland is above him in the scoring charts, and he has carried himself with a insouciant Wythenshawe swagger from scoring in the Community Shield and Super Cup – for Manchester City – to being Chelsea’s star man by the following May.
Too free-spirited for Pep Guardiola? Probably. But backing himself to succeed at Chelsea shows great character. John Brewin Cole Palmer .
It is not often that the Premier League’s best player is someone fighting to drag his team into the top half of the .
