The Young Player of the Year Award is a yearly award given out in the English Premier League to the best player in the English football who is aged 23 or under at the start of the season.
The award is officially called the Professional Footballers Association Young Player of the Year of PFA Young Player of the Year. The award has been handed out since the 1973-74 season with the winner being voted upon by members of the Players Trade Union and the Professional Footballers Association. A shortlist is published every April and along with the other winners of the PFA Awards, the winner is announced at a gala event in London.
Although the award is open to all players in all levels of English football, all the winners of the award to date played in the English Premier League. The winner of this award is also eligible to win the PFA Players Player of the Year award as well. Only seven players born outside the United Kingdom have won the award. Ryan Sessegnon of Fulham in 2018 became the first player outside top flight to be nominated for the award. Only Ryan Giggs, Robbie Fowler, Wayne Rooney, and Dele Allie have won this award on more than one instance.
Last season, Raheem Sterling of two-time Premier League champions Manchester United won the award with his exquisite performance during the 2018-19 season. With Sterling turning 24 last December, he is no longer eligible to win the award this term. As it stands, Trent Alexander-Arnold leads a murderer’s row of soccer betting favorites to win the award.
Here are the odds to win the 2019-20 EPL Young Player of the Year award. Odds were taken from 888sport.com as of 7/31/19:
Player | Odds |
---|---|
Trent Alexander-Arnold | 6 |
Marcus Rashford | 9 |
Gabriel Jesus | 11 |
Dele Alli | 13 |
Leroy Sane | 13 |
Callum Hudson-Odoi | 15 |
Phil Foden | 17 |
James Maddison | 17 |
Joe Gomez | 21 |
Declan Rice | 21 |
Richarlison | 21 |
Ruben Neves | 26 |
Anthony Martial | 29 |
Tammy Abraham | 34 |
Trent Alexander-Arnold is a true superstar in the making. The 20-year-old right-back stepped up for a title-chasing team in Liverpool. They came up short but Alexander-Arnold proved his worth during the previous term. He is an important piece in one of the best defenses in the Premier League. Liverpool conceded only 20 goals in 35 league games. But that wasn’t it as the youngster also offered his team offense. He had 8 assists in the previous term, 10 if you include the Champions League games. This dual-threat capability makes him worthy of being the top soccer betting favorite to win the 2020 Young Player of the Year.
Marcus Rashford was among the favorites to win this award during the last term. He scored 10 Premier League goals in 2018-19, his best output in four seasons with Manchester United. Rashford’s outstanding progress has been very noticeable and who could forget his cold-blooded penalty against Paris Saint-Germain, his first penalty in the senior club, which booked United’s place in the Champions League quarterfinals.
Gabriel Jesus was signed from the Brazilian club Palmeiras and he’s settled in quickly to his new environment in Manchester City. Jesus finished his first season with seven goals and four assists and justified his massive transfer fee. There were rumors that Jesus was brought in as a backup plan in case Sergio Aguero left the team. But with their leading scorer staying, Pep Guardiola’s got another weapon. After three seasons, Jesus has scored a total of 27 goals in 68 appearances.
Dele Allie was the PFA Young Player of the Year winner in his first two Premier League seasons for the Tottenham Hotspur. Allie was favored again in 2018 but he had an inconsistent season and award was given to Leroy Sane of Manchester City. Allie has scored a total of 42 Premier League goals in 131 appearances for the Hotspur.
Leroy Sane was the 2018 winner of this award and was also considered for last season’s trophy before it was awarded to his teammate Marcus Rashford. Sane has scored 25 Premier League goals in 89 appearances for Manchester City.
I like the value on Gabriel Jesus and I like the fact that he is playing for Pep Guardiola who is good at maximizing the potential of his players. But with Aguero still in town, I’m not sure if Jesus will get the opportunity that he truly deserves. Also, Leroy Sane is in the same boat at Manchester City and I think Sane’s presence will have an effect on Jesus as it will also have the other way around.
Marcus Rashford was one of the favorites last year and this could be his year. However, I like what Liverpool is doing right now and I like the kind of role that Trent Alexander-Arnold has been given there. That said, I think Alexander-Arnold has the most room for improvement given his role with the team and given the potential success of his team next term. Prediction: Trent Alexander-Arnold
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