Sadly there’s no room for player of the year Ryan Giggs here…
It’s another end of season list, but with a twist. To stop a roundup of the 08/09 Premier League team of the season descending into a top 4 love-in, we’ve tried to limit ourselves to only one player from each club. Sticklers for punishment that we are, we’re also rigidly sticking to a classic 4-4-2. It all ended up being a lot harder than we gave it credit for:
GK - Manuel Almunia (Arsenal)
Pulled off some super saves, stopped an inordinate amount of penalties, and has been good enough to have this ridiculous nonsense about him playing for England rise to the surface again. The Spanish keeper has come a long way from Jens Lehmann’s assessment he was to rubbish to play for Arsenal.
DR - Rory Delap (Stoke)
Rory Delap made a healthy contribution to securing Stoke’s top flight status, earning priceless league (and mental) victories against the big boys at a time when Stoke were looking the unfashionable new kids while Hull cakewalked it. He spent most of the season in midfield but his position is almost irrelevent for what he brings to the team.
DL - Luke Young (Aston Villa)
Playing completely out of position, covering for a crocked Wilfred Bouma and an absolutely dreadful Nicky Shorey, isn’t an ideal way to start your first season a new club, but Young has done the job manfully, without complaint and more often than not, impressively.
DC - Phil Jagielka (Everton)
One of the most reliable performers of the season until that heartbreaking injury, Jags has had a superb campaign, reaping benefits in the form of England
Obliging the interweb’s unrelenting appetite for “Best of 2008″ lists at this time of year, The Spoiler has considered the eleven players who have impressed us the most so far this season. There’s no room for well-played Brazilians or anyone who plays at Anfield or Old Trafford, and a surprise choice between the sticks…
GK Robert Green (West Ham)
Pepe Reina and Petr Cech may keep more clean sheets but they are rarely tested as much as Green, who (aside from one bad game against Bolton) has had a fantastic season. Of all the players West Ham could lose next month, it is Green’s departure that would prove the most fatal.
DL Luke Young (Aston Villa) The Spoiler wasn’t the only one to raise eyebrows when Aston Villa paid a fee rising to £6 million to sign Young in the summer but he has delivered not just at right-back, but out of position on the left too, where he has recently been preferred to the underperforming Nicky Shorey.
DC Michael Turner (Hull)
If someone told you at the start of the season that one of Hull’s
Chelsea have confirmed making a bid for Brazilian man-o’-sex Robinho (rumoured to be worth £19.7 million) but find themselves frustrated with Real Madrid’s failure to find a replacement, which is currently holding up proceedings. With Cristiano Ronaldo staying put and Wesley Sneijder out injured, this saga could be far from completion.
Kevin Doyle to Sunderland
Things were going great for Doyle. He impressed during his first Premier League season then was even linked with a move to Chelsea. What followed? A run of 21 games without a goal! Fear not though, Roy Keane is ready to offer him a second chance.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Sunderland and Doyle could prove a good match
Younes Kaboul to Aston Villa
Martin O’Neill has already signed
Reportedly, Hamburg’s Martin Jol politely enquired as to whether Liverpool would part with Dutch striker-turned-winger Dirk Kuyt, but was left petrified, alarmed and severely shaken after Rafa Benitez mentioned the £16m price tag. With no new wingers arriving, he will be needed again at Anfield, so a transfer looks unlikely.
Benni McCarthy to Blackburn
McCarthy doesn’t match any of Roy Keane’s three transfer target requirements (played for Manchester Utd, played in the Championship, comes from Ireland) yet a £7 million offer for the South Africa is being readied.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Keane wants another striker and Santa Cruz has stolen Benni’s thunder, but Ince may want to keep hold for now
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