Now there's a sensible assessment, rather than "he's ****, how did he get nominated" that has been said of Wellbeck. I don't think he'd be in the top 6, yet the reaction on here to him is a little OTT
Who makes the nominations for these awards ? Suarez would me my choice to win it with our Morgan as Young Player. How has he been overlooked for nomination in this category after the season that he has had ? Although Welbeck is a fine footballer, i cant understand how he has got a nomination ahead of other players this season - if we are talking strikers then has Welbeck's contribution this season been better than Rickie Lambert with the amount of goals, assists and general good play which has affected the outome of many games ? Doubt it. I have enjoyed watching Cazorla as much as anybody this season but there are so many that they cant all be nominated !
Just because it is the players choosing doesnt mean that we cant question the nominations. The players are often going to have personal agenda's rather than objective reasoning when choosing their nominations.
I see a great deal of irony in this article http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...decision-shortlist-Michu-PFA-Player-Year.html
Yeah, personal agendas are fine, it's just an opinion poll. It's not surprising the most well-known players are picked. The PFA awards are taken far too seriously.
I don't remember anyone caring about them as much before, couldn't even tell you who won last season without looking it up. But then, I suppose the league was interesting last year.
The Guardian did an alternative shortlist, and this is who they came up with: please log in to view this image
The only nominee who I don't think deserves it is Hazard, and I'd replace him with Baines. Perhaps it can be argued that actually RVP hasn't been one of the six best players this season, and maybe Michu deserves it more than him, but otherwise it's just a case of there being six players better than him. Also I think this guy is being a bit of a football hipster with some of those names. There's no way the likes of McCauley, Williams and Maloney are comparable to the nominees. They've done well but that's going a bit far.
Rickie Lambert's remark about Michu was spot on and I feel the incident over the weekend with Suarez means that he shouldn't even be in contention. Schneiderlin is a good shout as is Bains in the alternative list however I think that the choice is so obvious that anyone who is considering any other player than Gareth Bale needs their head examined! Easily the best player this season in the Premiership. I was amazed not to see Luke Shaw as the prime candidate for the young player of the year and his total omission is absolutely baffling. I think he has been a revelation and a player whose development has been exceptional. It's a shame the smaller clubs get over-looked and I wish that all four professional leagues should get equal consideration.
I think the problem with the PFA awards is that nominations have to be made early in the season and before individual players have had a chance to excel in the new season. That is why Shaw has not been nominated and it also explains some of the choices for POTY when you take into account the tail end of last season. We should do better next season but rather sadly there does seem to be a big club bias. I felt that when Hodgson was at St Mary's for the England game. All the pundits said he was there to eye up the Liverpool players and that meant they thought our English players were of no consequence. However the mealy mouthed media will soon be singing our praises.
I don't think Carrick has been as good as Schneiderlin or Arteta personally. Schneiderlin is 1st for tackles and interception in the league as well as ground covered. Arteta is comfortably 2nd for tackles and interceptions both out of the 3 of them. Arteta also has 92.3% passing accuracy, Carrick 88.1, Schneiderlin 84.7. I think Arteta is underrated. Man United have had a great team contribution this season. Their defence has got 12 goals for them (Ours has got 4) and they've had 19 different players score (we've had 10 different scorers). De Gea has been great at times when their defence has been a shambles as well. And Van Persie's contribution should not be underestimated. He not only has 24 goals in the league but he also has a lot of assists. Michu only has 3 assists and has been playing a low number of key passes. Van Persie, Suarez and Bale have outscored him and linked with teammates much better. So I don't think Michu should be in personally. Hazard nomination makes sense considering when it was made. He's chipped in with a lot of goals and assists. Right now I'd only nominate Mata as a creative player instead. Welbeck getting nominated is an even bigger mystery when Schneiderlin qualifies for the young player award and should have been nominated for the main award IMO.
Carrick attempts a lot of difficult balls. I think Schneiderlin and Arteta generally play a simpler passing game.
Actually that's in the stats as well. Arteta and Carrick both complete 5.8 long balls per game. Schneiderlin completes 2.6.
FLT, the day you see a... he's ****, how did he... style comment from me, you'll know that I been hit over the head with a soft hammer. I'm not the stereotypical football fan [thankfully, they are in the minority on this forum]. Thanks for the compliment, by the way.
An alternative PFA team of the year (including players from teams that do not count according to the author) has been included in this article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2013/apr/20/fa-cup-final-fans Ps it includes Schneiderlin and Lambert.
http://www.whoateallthepies.tv/lists/163562/top-10-pies-alternative-player-of-the-year-shortlist.html Alternative list and spiderman doesn't even get an honourable mention
Considering the nominations were made at xmas time, it is ludicrous to imagine any of our players being nominated.
