Phil Foden has won the PFA Young Player of the Year award for the second year in a row after playing a key role in Manchester City’s Premier League title win.
Foden, 22, had nine goals and five assists as City won their fourth championship in five seasons under manager Pep Guardiola.
Conor Gallagher, who performed for Crystal Palace while on loan from Chelsea, Reece James, also of Chelsea, Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey, and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe were all nominated for the award.
Foden joins Ryan Giggs, Rob Fowler, Wayne Rooney, Dele Alli, and Lauren Hemp as the sixth player to win the PFA Young Player of the Year award back-to-back.
Alli was the last player to claim the prize in consecutive seasons having achieved the feat in 2017!
“I’m really honoured to be honest, especially to win it back-to-back, it shows that I’ve come a long way this year with the consistency of my game, and I’m really pleased to win it again,” Foden said.
“All the best players in the world have got to show consistency and keep performing at the higher level, and this year I’ve just tried to do that and try and help my team as much as possible – I’ve been really happy with my performances this year.
“Hopefully I can win the main award in the future, but it’s all about taking small steps and improving. I always love winning individual awards, it’s just nice to look at and see how far you’ve come so, yeah, I’m really pleased.”
Foden is one of the most adaptable players at the Etihad, and his key goals against Brentford and Everton demonstrated how important he can be for both club and country.
Last month, he was crowned Premier League Young Player of the Season.
Although voting features modern techniques such as nominating players online or through an app, the anachronistic early closing of the polls occurs despite the fact that the awards, which are conducted as a virtual event, do not take place until tonight.
The PFA claims that the vote was closed early owing to logistical difficulties in holding interviews with the winners, but considering that no one would be present at the event, some have questioned if that should have been a priority!
