Top 10 PFA Young Player of the Year Winners

jonjoward1998
May 20
6 min read

The PFA Young Player of the Year is the award every young player wants to win at the start of the season and especially the ones who have already broken into the first team for their clubs.

Most of the winners of the award had already broke into the first team in the season they won the award with some of them already being first team regulars, including some of the names on the list.

But there are some players who have won the award in their breakthrough season. For this to happen, a player will need to break into the first team for their club, make an impression the moment they break into the first team, and then become a regular starter for their club side.

When I look back at the list, there are a few names that I maybe should've thought of in Wayne Rooney, Cesc Fabregas and even Robbie Fowler. They all had bright future ahead of them when they started out and they all made a big impact in the season's they won the award.

Now here is the list:

Eden Hazard

Phil Foden

Trent Alexander-Arnold

Dele Alli

Jack Wilshere

Cristiano Ronaldo

Gareth Bale

Bukayo Saka

Cole Palmer

Michael Owen

Jack WIlshere

Wilshere won the award in the 2010/11 season which was his breakthrough season at Arsenal where he showed a lot of promise.

His standout moment from that season has to be his performance against Barcelona in the Champions League where he bossed the midfield against quality players like Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

He was a delightful player to watch on his day as he was a good carrier of the ball, knew when to play the right pass, loved to get stuck in when making tackles, and could run games from midfield. Just like he did that night against Barcelona.

Had he not had the injuries that plagued his career, he would've been a regular for England for many years as well as Arsenal.

Bukayo Saka

Saka won the award in the 2022/23 season where he was not just already a regular starter for Arsenal, but also their man at the age of just 21.

He hit 14 goals and 12 assists that season as Arsenal went close to winning the title and it was during that season where he became an important player for England as well as Arsenal.

His game has gone onto another level since he won the award as he's now one of the best attacking players both in the Premier League and in Europe.

Cole Palmer

Palmer was last season's winner of the award following a stellar debut season at Chelsea where he netted 22 goals and carried the team for pretty much the entire season.

Chelsea had an up and down season last season with Palmer being by far their standout performer and if it wasn't for him, the blues would've finished much lower down the league.

He's probably going to be in contention to win the award again this season despite his form tailing off in the second half of the season.

Trent Alexander-Arnold

Alexander-Arnold won the award for the 2019/20 season after playing a starring role for Liverpool as they ended their long wait for a Premier League title.

He registered a staggering 13 assists from full back that season as Liverpool won their first league title in 30 years with his creativity playing a key role.

He and Andrew Robertson were the reds' chief creators during that season and have been the two players who have changed the role of a full back by being to get forward and create.

He's further established himself as one of the best attacking full backs in Europe in the years since he won the award and his creativity from full back has been integral to Liverpool's success over the last few years.

Phil Foden

Foden won the award twice and in back to back seasons in 2020/21 and 2021/22 respectively where he played in key role in Man City winning the title in both seasons.

The first time he won the award in 2021 was his breakthrough season where he registered 9 goals and 5 assists, stepping into David Silva's shoes after the Spaniard left at the start of the season.

He hit the exact same numbers the following season where he further established himself as one of the first names on the City team sheet.

He's been integral to City success since he broke into their first team and he would later win the main prize a few seasons later in 2024.

Dele Alli

Alli also won the award twice and in back to back seasons in 2015/16 and 2016/17 respectively.

He showed a lot of promise during those two seasons with his energy and ability to break into the box and score goals and it was these attributes that made him one of the most exciting young players around, and a regular in the England team.

He registered 10 goals and 8 assists in the season he first won the award and 18 goals and 9 assists the second time as Spurs went close to winning the league in both seasons.

It's a shame that his career soon faded not long after those incredible seasons with injuries and loss of form being the two main reasons.

Eden Hazard

Hazard won the award in the 2013/14 season which was the year he stepped up and became Chelsea's new talisman.

Frank Lampard was probably the blues' main man at the time and as he was heading towards the end of his career, they needed someone to take up the mantle and Hazard was the player who took it up that season.

He scored 14 times for Chelsea that season but despite his best efforts, the blues finished 3rd and fell short of challenging for the title.

He would go on to bag the main one the following season where Chelsea went one better and won the title.

Gareth Bale

Bale won the award in his final season at Spurs in 2012/13 where he also picked up the main award after netting an incredible 21 times.

He put himself right among the best players in Europe that season with the goals he scored and the all round performances he put in throughout the season.

He got his big money move to Real Madrid off the back of that season as Spurs finished 5th meaning that they missed out on Champions League qualification.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo won the award in the 2006/07 season which was the season where he began to grow into the player he would go on to become.

He was all about the flicks and tricks during his first few seasons at Man United, but in the 2006/07 season he added end product to his game as he netted 17 times as United won the first of three consecutive titles.

His performances that season also won him the main award alongside the young version and he would bag another one of the former in the following season.

Michael Owen

Owen had to be no.1 for me because in the season he won the award in 1997/98, he won a share of the golden boot with Chris Sutton and Dion Dublin at the age of just 18. How many players win a golden boot at 18?

He did make a couple of appearances for the Liverpool first team the season before, but the 1997/98 season was the season where he burst onto the scene as he scored 18 goals and ran defenders ragged thanks to his incredible pace.

His performances during that season earned him a call up straight into the England senior squad and he would later be part of the squad that went to the World Cup in France, where he announced himself on the word stage with incredible goal against Argentina.

He showed bags of promise during the early years of his career when he was one of the most exciting young talents around. But his career soon declined due to injuries of which he had many of throughout his career.

MY TOP 10: