5 contenders for the PFA Young Player of the Year Award | Premier League 2019-20

We’re just a month away now from the PFA Awards ceremony, and while most of the press coverage will be centred around the competition to win the PFA Player of the Year – with the likes of Jordan Henderson, Virgil Van Dijk and Kevin De Bruyne the current favourites – the competition for the PFA Young Player of the Year, given to the best player of the season under the age of 23, is equally as tight.

In the past, stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Kane, Gareth Bale and Wayne Rooney have been the recipient of the prestigious award – but who will take it this year? Perhaps one of these 5 players – who have all been outstanding during 2019-20 – will be the victor.

#1 Trent Alexander-Arnold

Trent Alexander-Arnold has registered 12 assists for Liverpool this season

Liverpool look set to be the Premier League’s runaway winners this season, and part of that success has to do with the tremendous performances of right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold. Still just 21 years old, the last couple of campaigns have seen him show glimpses of his massive talent – nobody will ever forget his quick corner that led to the Reds’ famous 4th goal against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals last year – but 2019-20 has been the season where he’s really come into his own.

The England international is one of just three Reds players – alongside Roberto Firmino and Virgil Van Dijk – to play in all 29 of Liverpool’s Premier League matches, and incredibly, due to a single appearance from the bench, he’s only missed an hour of action altogether. In this time he’s scored 2 goals and has registered a phenomenal 12 assists – more than any other Liverpool player, an incredible statistic considering he plays primarily as a defender.

Alexander-Arnold’s tremendous delivery from wide positions marks him out as a key man for Jurgen Klopp’s side, but his pace, quick thinking and passing ability – he averages 2.6 key passes per game, the most in Liverpool’s squad – are also unbelievable.

Sure, there are still a handful of questions around his actual defensive play – plenty of observers believe his best position may end up being further up the pitch, ala the great Gareth Bale – but for now, it’s hard to dispute him as a world-class performer who belies his young age, and he’d be a worthy winner of this award.

#2 Dean Henderson

Dean Henderson has kept 10 clean sheets in the current campaign

Sheffield United have undoubtedly been the Premier League’s surprise package this season; the Blades currently sit in 7th – with a game in hand on their rivals – and are in with a very real shout of securing Champions League football next season. Even more surprising though is the fact that Chris Wilder’s team have the second-tightest defence in the league – behind only top-of-the-table Liverpool – which is unheard of for a promoted side.

Part of their defensive success has been the form of goalkeeper Dean Henderson, who is on loan from Manchester United. The 22-year old has been in imperious form throughout the season, with a mature head on his shoulders that makes him come across like a battle-hardened veteran rather than a young kid in his debut Premier League season.

Henderson has made 27 appearances in the current campaign, and has kept 10 clean sheets, conceding just 22 goals in the process. Along the way, he’s made a total of 70 saves, and has made just one major error that led to a goal – a lapse in concentration that saw him let Georginio Wijnaldum’s shot go right through him in the Blades’ loss to Liverpool.

The England U-21 international isn’t quite the finished article yet; his abilities with the ball at his feet and his range of passing could both be better, but realistically, a goalkeeper’s primary job is to stop goals from being conceded, and essentially, no keeper in 2019-20 has done that better than Henderson.

#3 Tammy Abraham

Tammy Abraham has been one of the Premier League's hottest strikers in 2019-20

A mixture of fatigue and injuries might’ve knocked him off form as of late – he hasn’t scored a goal since January 11th – but during the first half of the 2019-20 campaign, there was no hotter striker in the Premier League than Chelsea’s 22-year old academy graduate Tammy Abraham. Handed the #9 shirt and given the mantle of leading the line for the Blues by new boss Frank Lampard, Abraham has grabbed his opportunity with both hands this season.

Hints of his massive potential were shown last season – when he plundered 26 goals in the EFL Championship for Aston Villa – but in his first few appearances this season it looked like he wasn’t quite ready to be Chelsea’s main striker. That idea was quickly put to bed when the youngster scored 7 goals in 3 consecutive games, and from there, he seemed to pop up every week to add to his total.

As of writing, Abraham has scored 15 goals in all competitions – 13 in the Premier League and 2 in the Champions League – and he’s also registered 4 assists. His hold-up play, movement and overall contribution to the team have all improved massively since his previous stint in the Premier League – a loan spell at Swansea – and he’s also broken into England’s senior squad, scoring his first international goal in November.

Whether he can return to form in the latter stages of the season is a question mark – he hasn’t been fully fit since late January despite making a handful of appearances since – but if he can, and if he can score the goals that fire Chelsea into the Champions League, then he’d be a worthy winner of this award.

#4 Marcus Rashford

Marcus Rashford has enjoyed the best season of his career in 2019-20

Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford seems to have been around for years now, to the point where it’d be easy to assume that he wouldn’t be eligible for an award like this. However, he’s still only 22 years old, which makes his fantastic form during the current season even more impressive. The England international is currently sidelined with a back injury, but prior to that, he was easily one of the Premier League’s most dangerous attackers.

Rashford actually struggled somewhat when the season begun, as he was used as a centre-forward – a position that simply doesn’t make the most of his speed and dribbling skills. But once United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer realised that and moved him into a role as a left-sided wide forward, he appeared to be unstoppable at times.

The 22-year old has scored a total of 19 goals in all competitions this season, a career-best return made even more impressive when you consider he’s only played 31 games compared to 47, 52 and 53 in the last 3 campaigns. Along the way, he’s scored key goals against Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City, and has been named Man of the Match by WhoScored.com on 7 occasions.

Simply put, Rashford has developed into the Red Devils’ most important player; despite their good form at the minute, they’re nowhere near as dangerous an attacking unit without him, and if he continues on his current trajectory, he will almost certainly go onto be recognised as one of the world’s best forwards.

#5 Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Aaron Wan-Bissaka has kept great attackers like Raheem Sterling quiet this season

It’s hard to believe now, but some observers scoffed when Manchester United splashed out around £50m to bring in 22-year old right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace during the summer transfer window – but 8 months down the line, it’d be hard to argue that he hasn’t been worth every penny. The Red Devils’ defence has looked far tougher this season, and the presence of the England U-21 international has played a massive part in that.

Wan-Bissaka has appeared in 26 of United’s 29 Premier League games, with only the ever-present David De Gea and Harry Maguire making more starts, and his defensive statistics are simply phenomenal. The former Palace man averages 3.8 successful tackles, 2 successful interceptions and 0.5 successful blocks per game – more than any other player in Solskjaer’s squad, and only Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes – who has only played 5 games thus far – can beat his WhoScored.com average rating of 7.21.

The current campaign has seen him completely shackle tremendous attackers such as Raheem Sterling, Pedro and Diogo Jota, looking impossible to beat for pace at times and seemingly able to put in a clean tackle from any angle.

Like an inversion of Trent Alexander-Arnold, it’s true that Wan-Bissaka’s attacking work could do with some improvement, but recent games have seen him show off some impressive dribbling and he has registered 2 assists. Overall, he’s been a fantastic investment for United – looking like the tremendous kind of young player that the club would’ve signed during the Ferguson era.