For the first time since 2010, both the men’s PFA Young Player of the Year and the PFA Players’ Player of the Year awards were won by Englishmen. Chelsea’s Cole Palmer scooped the former while Man City’s Phil Foden picked up the most prestigious title of the night. Both awards rarely produce an underserving winner and this was no exception as both enjoyed a superb 2023/24 season.
What Are the PFA Awards?
For those who are not aware, each year the Professional Footballers’ Association holds an annual awards ceremony. The association itself is a trade union for current and former footballers from the Premier League, the EFL and the Women’s Super League. It boasts around 5,000 members and is the world’s oldest sporting trade union, so it carries a hefty amount of clout and respect.
At the PFA Awards, winners are determined by the votes of fellow players who select their preferences from a shortlist. In the men’s game, there are five awards dished out, one for ‘Player of the Year’ across England’s top four divisions, plus a ‘Young Player of the Year’ exclusive to the Premier League. There are an additional two awards given for Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year in the women’s game.
The awards have been on the go since 1974 meaning that Phil Foden and Cole Palmer claimed the 51st edition of their respective trophies.
Why Are the PFA Awards Important?
Football may be a team game but earning formal recognition for an exceptional individual season is something that most players take a lot of pride in. As far as individual accolades go, the PFA awards are among the most prestigious a Premier League footballer can hope to win. It is not on the level of the Ballon d’Or but it lies within the next tier of individual awards and has been won by some highly decorated players.
There are a few reasons why players take an interest in this award and why the ceremony itself is well attended. One is that it carries a lot of history with it being 50 years old. This has enabled its prestige to gradually develop over time. Another is that winners are selected by fellow professional players. When winning the Player of the Year Award in 2005, John Terry said it was the “ultimate accolade to be voted for by your fellow professionals whom you play against week-in and week-out”.
Who Is Eligible for the Young Player Award?
Players can make it onto the Young Player Award shortlist if they are 21 or under at the start of the season (that the award relates to). They do not need to play for a Premier League club but usually, the shortlist exclusively contains top-flight players.
It was only in 2018 that the award saw the first player from outside England’s top division make the shortlist, this being Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon. Players are not excluded if they are in the running for the Players’ Player award. There have even been some instances of players winning both, most recently Gareth Bale in 2013.
English Double in 2024
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Now you have the full background of the PFA Awards, let us now focus on the 2024 winners. Two-time Young Player of the Year winner Phil Foden took the main Players’ Player prize while Cole Palmer bagged the same award Foden secured in 2021 and 2022. Seeing an English player win the Young Player award is a very common sight. Starting from 2009, out of the 16 awards handed out, 13 of them have gone to an Englishman.
The reason there have been so few English doubles in recent years is that English players have struggled to win the Players’ Player of the Year Award. In the last 18 editions of the award, Wayne Rooney in 2010 is the only other English winner besides Foden. Harry Kane should perhaps be on this list too after an outstanding 2020/21 season which saw him top the Premier League for goals and assists, a feat not managed since Andy Cole in 1993/94. Despite this, the award, slightly controversially, instead went to Kevin De Bruyne (who by most accounts should have also been behind teammate Ruben Dias in the pecking order).
Who Missed Out?
For both awards, the PFA produce a shortlist of six players. The Young Player Top Six featured two other Englishmen besides Foden: Bukayo Saka and Kobbie Mainoo. Other young stars on the list included Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho, Brighton’s Joao Pedro and Michael Olise, who moved from Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich in the summer. Olise was born in England but would have been classed as a French winner if selected, having represented Les Blues at youth and Olympic level.
For the Players’ Player Award, Foden was joined by Man City teammates, Erling Haaland and Rodri. There was also space for Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard plus the English duo of Ollie Watkins and Palmer. Foden was the overwhelmingly strong favourite though after earlier collecting the FWA (Football Writers’ Association) and Premier League Player of the Year awards. The bookies had him at him at 1/5 to claim another trophy with teammate Rodri in second place at 4/1 odds.
Foden and Palmer – Worthy Winners?
Very occasionally the PFA Awards produce a winner that is not a particularly popular choice among fans but that does not apply here. Despite playing for a struggling Chelsea side, Palmer consistently stood out and was so often their best player. Regularly he would be the difference maker and without his attacking talent, it is very hard to imagine Chelsea securing a return to European football.
Palmer ended the season with 22 league goals, a total only bettered by Erling Haaland. This was two more goals than Foden managed but the silky midfielder reached 19 goals without a single penalty, whereas nine of Palmer’s came from the spot. On top of this, Foden registered eight assists giving him a total of 27 goal contributions. This assist tally was three fewer than Palmer (who also made two fewer appearances) but a team’s performance is usually a factor in this award. The fact that Foden’s superb performances were integral to City narrowly securing another Premier League title meant he was always going to be favoured.
PFA Team of the Year
Despite winning the Young Player Award and being shortlisted in the Players’ Player category, there was no room for Palmer in the PFA Team of the Year. He was the only nominee for Players’ Player not to make the eleven. Instead, players voted for a team consisting of Raya – Walker – Van Dijk – Gabriel – Saliba – Rice – Rodri – Odegaard – Foden – Haaland – Watkins.
Other PFA Winners
Here are the other five players who ended up claiming an award at the 2024 PFA Awards.
- Championship Player of the Year – Crysencio Summerville
- League One Player of the Year – Alfie May
- League Two Player of the Year – Jodi Jones
- Women’s Player of the Year – Khadija Shaw
- Women’s Young Player of the Year – Grace Clinton