Five Premier League POTY contenders as season nears end

There are just five game weeks left of the Premier League season, and yet there is still so much to be decided at both ends of the table. 

Manchester City currently hold a one-point lead over Liverpool at the summit, and know that the reds will be waiting to pounce if they do make a mistake.

There is also the race for Champions League qualification to be concluded. While north London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham look set to battle it out for fourth place, Manchester United, West Ham and even Wolves are mathematically still in with a chance.

There are also a number of teams still battling it out to stay in the division. Norwich and Watford look certain to be regelated, but Burnley, Leeds United and Everton are all set to battle it out to avoid finishing 18th.

While there is still lots of football to be played, the end of season awards are fast approaching, and here we take a look at some of the contenders for the Player of the Year Award.

Mohamed Salah

The current favourite for the award is Liverpool star Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian has been his usual prolific self in front of goal this term, and leads the goal scoring charts by seven, ahead of teammate Diogo Jota. The Reds forward also leads the way in terms of assists, with 13, and could still finish the season with a second Premier League winners medal. The 29-year-old’s form has dipped slightly of late, though, and he has scored just six goals since the start of 2022, compared to 16 prior.

Kevin De Bruyne

The Belgian has also been in fantastic form this season, and has been integral to much of City’s recent success. The 30-year-old has 17 goal contributions so far this term, and looks set to secure his fourth Premier League title. While this season has not been De Bruyne’s most prolific in terms of goals or assists, the Belgium international has scored important goals for City, including the winner in a 1-0 win over Chelsea in January, and against Liverpool in their recent 2-2 draw.

Harry Kane

At the start of December, Kane looked to have no chance of winning the POTY award, having scored just once in Tottenham’s firs 15 league games. Since then, though, the England captain has scored 11 goals and provided seven assists, propelling Spurs into a top four race. The striker’s goal scoring ability has never been questioned, but his record of five assists in three games at the end of March and start of April proved his all round ability.

Joao Cancelo

The Portuguese full-back has been in sensational form for City this season, whether used at right-back or left-back. Cancelo has played in 32 league games so far this season, clocking up more than 2,750 minutes of football in total. During that time, he has registered six assists, including one in City’s 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge in September. The Portugal international has been defensively solid, too, contributing towards 17 of the 19 clean sheets that the Citizens have kept this campaign.

Antonio Rudiger

Certainly an outside for the award, Rudiger may realistically have very little chance of being named POTY, but the German has undoubtedly been one of the division’s best defenders this season. The Chelsea man had started 28 of the Blues’ 30 league games, before missing the last two outings through injury, and his defensive work has been crucial to their success. Alongside Thiago Silva, Rudiger looks a much improved player from the error-prone defender that we saw under Frank Lampard.

While Salah’s remarkable goal and assist record may make him almost certain to win the award, there is still lots of games remaining and plenty of time for another player to force his way into the reckoning.