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We are rapidly approaching the end of the 2018/2019 Premier League season and with just 10 matchdays to go, we already have a clear picture of how the league table is shaping up to look like.
Clubs like Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur look on course to achieve their season objectives, while others like Manchester United and Arsenal are back on track after earlier fumbles.
Further down the table, it is also going to be an intense battle, as the likes of Fulham, Cardiff, Southampton amongst others fight it out to preserve their PL status next season, while Everton, Leicester, West Ham, Wolves, and the likes are safe in mid-table obscurity.
However, it is not just on the league table where there are rewards up for grabs, as there are also prestigious personal prizes such as the Golden Boot, PFA Player and PFA Young Player of the Year awards among others to be decided.
The PFA Player of the Year is arguably the most prestigious award available to professional players in England, with a higher premium placed on it by the winners due to the fact that it is given out based on votes collated by their fellow professional footballers.
The award has been handed out since 1974 and has been won by the who's who to have graced the English game, with the roll call of winners including legendary names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Alan Shearer, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Thierry Henry, Ryan Giggs, Eden Hazard, N'Golo Kante, and Eric Cantona among others.
Mohammed Salah is the current holder of the award, following his record-breaking debut season with Liverpool and with the award set to be decided soon, we shall be taking a look at seven players who could potentially be named the 2018/2019 PFA Player of the Year.
#7 Paul Pogba - Manchester United
A rather curious choice given his atrocious form earlier in the season under Jose Mourinho, Paul Pogba has however been a player reborn since the appointment of Ole Gunner Solksjaer, taking on a central role and leading Manchester United's charge to reclaim their lost pride of and make their name amongst the elite names of the sport.
The 25-year-old has put no foot wrong since his former youth team manager took the reins at Old Trafford, with his only blemish coming in the UCL clash with PSG where he received a red card in the dying embers of the match.
So far this season, the World Cup winner has scored 11 goals from 25 PL matches, of which eight have come in just 11 matches since Solksjaer took over, while half of his six assists have also been created in the same time.
Pogba's claim to the award could be boosted much more if he can help guide United to achieve a top-four finish, which would have been unthinkable less than two months ago.
#6 Harry Kane - Tottenham
Harry Kane has been one of the most consistent goalscorers in Europe over the last five seasons, winning consecutive Premier League Golden Boots in 2016 and 2017, while also remarkably outscoring both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in the 2017 calendar year, in addition to finishing as the highest goalscorer at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
So far this season, the Spurs number 10 has kept up with his impressive goalscoring form and currently finds himself in 4th spot on the list of highest goalscorers in this season's Premier League campaign.
Kane has 15 goals and four assists from 24 EPL matches this term to help Tottenham to third place on the Premier League table and these figures would undoubtedly have been higher but for an unfortunate ankle injury which ruled him out for three weeks.
#5 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - Arsenal
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang joined Arsenal on deadline day in January 2018 for a club record fee of £56m and since then, he has proved himself to be worth every penny.
The Gabonese international had earlier in his career established himself as one of the most lethal strikers in Europe with his performances for Dortmund in the Bundesliga where he won the 2016/2017 Bundesliga Golden Boot award ahead of Bayern's Robert Lewandowski.
It, therefore, came as a major surprise when Europe's major clubs did not actively seek his signature when he fell out with the BVB board and sought a transfer away from Dortmund.
Since arriving at the Emirates, Aubameyang has scored 26 goals from 40 PL appearances, of which 15 including four assists have come from 27 matches this season to help Arsenal in their quest to reclaim a top-four finish after consecutive seasons of missing out.
#4 Eden Hazard - Chelsea
Eden Hazard began this season like a house on fire, returning from his Silver Ball winning exploits with Belgium at the World Cup to bang in goals and assist for fun for Chelsea, enjoying the freedom afforded him under Sarri's expansive style of play.
This period of fine form for Hazard coincided with Chelsea's unbeaten run and the Belgian was everyone's early favorite at that point for the PFA Player of the Year award, with many others suggesting he could win the 2019 Ballon d'OR.
Hazard was the EPL top scorer with seven goals from the first 10 matches of the season (which included his second Premier League hat-trick for Chelsea), while also topping the assist charts.
However, those days are long gone and the Belgian has failed to exert the same influence on matches, which has coincided with Chelsea's struggles in the league.
Even though Hazard might be beneath his usual standards at the moment, he has still managed to score 12 goals and make 10 assists (league high) from 26 matches this season and on his day remains among the best players in the world.
#3 Mo Salah - Liverpool
The current PFA Player of the Year, Mohamed Salah blew everyone away with his performances for Liverpool in his debut season which saw him score 44 goals in all competitions, guiding Liverpool to the final of the UCL, as well as a top-four finish.
His displays last season unsurprisingly made him the winner of numerous individual awards including the PFA, CAF and PWA Player of the Year, as well as making it to the podium for the FIFA and UEFA Best Player awards.
His extraordinary performances were largely unexpected, leading many to believe he would be a one-season wonder and his slow start this season laid credence to this claim.
However, his coach and teammates never wavered in their belief in the Egyptian, and the 26-year-old has repaid their faith massively, as he leads Liverpool's charge for a first ever Premier League title.
So far this season, Salah has scored 17 goals and registered seven assists from 28 matches, which makes folly of those who suggested that he would flop spectacularly this term.
#2 Sergio Aguero - Manchester City
In just seven years of being a Manchester City player, Sergio Aguero has played his way into being considered arguably the greatest player in the club's history.
He cemented his status as an icon forever after the club's first ever Premier League title was won when he got the last touch of the 2011/2012 season and since then, he has only grown in stature (no pun intended) with his performances in the colors of the Cityzens.
The 30-year-old has scored 160 PL goals from 229 fixtures which is the eighth highest of all-time, while his record of 12 hat-tricks remains the most scored by any player in the history of the Premier League.
With 223 goals, the Argentine international is City's record goalscorer, while his 18 goals this season are enough to place him top of the scorer's chart in the Premier League.
He has also weighed in with an extra six assists to help Man City sustain their quest to retain the Premier League title they won so emphatically last season.
Remarkably, for all of his extraordinary performances, Aguero has never been named PFA Player of the Year (he only made it to the PFA XI last season), but if he can guide City to overtake Liverpool, then this season could be the one where this anomaly is corrected.
#1 Virgil van Dijk - Liverpool
A lot of eyebrows were raised when Liverpool splashed out £75m to being Virgil van Dijk to Anfield, making him the most expensive defender in history, but the Dutch international has proved to be worth every penny.
Before his arrival, Liverpool had a joke for a defense, with numerous comical errors costing the team points and titles, but there has been a marked difference since his arrival at Melwood.
Van Dijk possesses an excellent ability to read games and is also adept at positioning himself so that he rarely has to make a tackle, while also bringing his leadership abilities to the fore in marshaling his fellow defenders.
The transformation at Liverpool has been massive since his arrival, as The Reds have been forged into one of the most stable defensive units in Europe.
Under van Dijk's watch, Liverpool have conceded just 15 goals in 28 matches, with just seven of those coming at Anfield.
These are numbers which would scarcely have been believable less than a year ago and is the reason why Liverpool currently find themselves top of the league as they begin to dream of a first league title since 1989.
It is a well-known fact that great defenses win titles and if Liverpool can maintain their standards and win the Premier League, then a lot of it would be down to the impact of the 26-year-old Van Dijk since his arrival and this could see him become only the second defender in the Premier League era and first since John Terry in 2005 to be named the PFA Player of the Year.
