PFA Player & Young Player of the Year 2013

[brenchill]

Fergie and Hodgson love him. I refuse to believe both of them are wrong.

Unless it's Fergie who's wrong and Woy is just picking him because he trusts Fergie's judgment...

[Kaney]

Mata should take that. I have absolutely no idea why Wilshere was even nominated, other than to fill the numbers maybe.

[Matt]

Because he has:

[ZJ Penn]

I know these lists are pretty much always attack minded but Pablo Zabaleta has been awesome all season.

Nastisic should get Bales Young Player nomination too.

[Adam]

I agree with the concerns raised so far - particularly players being on both lists and the fact that Welbeck and Wilshere just seem to be picked by default.

RVP, Suarez, Bale and Mata for me are easily the best 4 players in the division this season so glad they've all been nominated. Hazard has largely been fantastic too. Carrick makes no sense though. As for the Young Player, can't argue with the others on that list - the award really should go to Benteke or Lukaku based on who they've nominated. But Bale will probably win it by default even though he's on the other list.

[Jimmy]

So stupid that people can be nominated on both lists. Of the young player list, I feel Bale would walk away with it, but I hope he doesn't get it. He's outgrown that list and you really just shouldn't be on both. Welbeck and Wilshere being on there is a joke. Benteke or Lukaku to win that, hopefully.

Very happy Carrick got a nomination. Want Bale to win, but think Suarez deserves it equally as much.

[METALMAN]

It's not stupid that people can be nominated for both.

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Restricting the nominations like that doesn't work.

[Pesci]

Yeah, I don't think you should be restricted to one list either. But as I said I think the rules and/or name need changing to make it more of a rookie thing rather than strictly age based. Feels weird that Eden Hazard can be nominated for something like this after all he achieved last season and that Bale can be nominated two years after winning the full PFA award. There's not much point in saying somebody's the best player under 24 in a sport where Messi was crowned the best player in the world three times by the time he was that age.

[Jimmy]

It's not stupid that people can be nominated for both.

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Restricting the nominations like that doesn't work.

But if it just makes it all a bit redundant. If anyone but Hazard or Bale wins, then why didn't get nominated for the main player award?

[TCO]

Welbeck and Wilshere haven't stood out at all this season. Glad to see Carrick get nominated though, it's rare to see playersof his style recognised.

With Bale and Hazard, both nominated for the two awards, surely logic would dictate only one of the two of them could win YPOTY? It'd be funny if one of the others win it.

I reckon it should go to Suarez and Bale respectively but I think it's likely Suarez will miss out for being a complete cunt, which is unfortuante because he deserves it. I'm going with RVP and Bale as a prediction, but I could easily see a Bale sweep happening too.

I haven't taken this award seriously since Gerrard missed out in 2009 when it's name changed to the PFA Lifetime Achievement Award.

[Summers]

It's not stupid that people can be nominated for both.

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Restricting the nominations like that doesn't work.

But if it just makes it all a bit redundant. If anyone but Hazard or Bale wins, then why didn't get nominated for the main player award?

QFE.

If Benteke wins it, but Bale wins the "any age" one, it makes no sense as to how 'teke can beat Bale but not be nominated for the other.

[stokeriño]

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Diddums to him. One could argue, with an equal lack of sense, that perhaps it's also unfair that a 21 year old gets two award shots and a 25 year old only gets one. "WHERE'S OUR SENIOR POTY AWARD?" they cry.

Either ditch the YPOTY award entirely in order to honour the Best Player Full Stop, or solidify the age restrictions (i.e. you are only eligible for the YPOTY until X age, at which point you are only eligible for the other). I'm sure the footballing world would be able to cope with the eventuality of a Young award winner being evidently the better player than the Senior award winner without some kind of mental and/or ethical breakdown.

A rookie-type award would be a neat idea but I can't currently imagine any way to define it, given the way players can spend years on loan or getting maybe 6 substitute appearances in the first team before they make a mark.

[TCO]

Feels weird that Eden Hazard can be nominated for something like this after all he achieved last season

This is Hazard's first season in the Premier League though and he's only just 22, by any standards imaginable, he should be eligible.

[Nerf]

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Diddums to him. One could argue, with an equal lack of sense, that perhaps it's also unfair that a 21 year old gets two award shots and a 25 year old only gets one. "WHERE'S OUR SENIOR POTY AWARD?" they cry.

Either ditch the YPOTY award entirely in order to honour the Best Player Full Stop, or solidify the age restrictions (i.e. you are only eligible for the YPOTY until X age, at which point you are only eligible for the other). I'm sure the footballing world would be able to cope with the eventuality of a Young award winner being evidently the better player than the Senior award winner without some kind of mental and/or ethical breakdown.

A rookie-type award would be a neat idea but I can't currently imagine any way to define it, given the way players can spend years on loan or getting maybe 6 substitute appearances in the first team before they make a mark.

You could also argue that being runner-up POTY is better than winning the "young" variant.

[stokeriño]

True enough. Do they do 'runners up'? I can't remember.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

They should have fill-ins like Carnival Queens. So for example if Bale wins POTY but moves to Spain in the summer, then the runner up (Mata for example) takes up the crown and sash in his absence.

[Nerf]

They should have fill-ins like Carnival Queens. So for example if Bale wins POTY but moves to Spain in the summer, then the runner up (Mata for example) takes up the crown and sash in his absence.

I don't think you have to worry about both those things happening this year.

Bale isn't winning POTY

[stokeriño]

I do like the idea of a sash.

Or really, I'd like if a winner behaved like a heel King of the Ring winner and smugly paraded his trophy everywhere for the entirety of the following season.

[METALMAN]

Imagine a young guy was second best player of the season, behind some old guy. Well, obviously he's nominated for player of the year. Then the guy who was better than wins player of the year.

Young player is left empty handed as someone he was way better than wins YPOTY.

Diddums to him. One could argue, with an equal lack of sense, that perhaps it's also unfair that a 21 year old gets two award shots and a 25 year old only gets one. "WHERE'S OUR SENIOR POTY AWARD?" they cry.

Either ditch the YPOTY award entirely in order to honour the Best Player Full Stop, or solidify the age restrictions (i.e. you are only eligible for the YPOTY until X age, at which point you are only eligible for the other). I'm sure the footballing world would be able to cope with the eventuality of a Young award winner being evidently the better player than the Senior award winner without some kind of mental and/or ethical breakdown.

A rookie-type award would be a neat idea but I can't currently imagine any way to define it, given the way players can spend years on loan or getting maybe 6 substitute appearances in the first team before they make a mark.

That cheapens the player of the year award though. Is someone really the Player of the Year if they are picked from a field that is limited by age? What's wrong with a player being player of the year and young player of the year? it's possible to be both. Awards aren't (or at least, shouldn't be) about sharing and making sure everyone's happy. .

[Matt]

I think they should make the YPOTY for 21 year olds and younger. At 24 you could have 6-7 years of experience and 200 premier league games to your name.