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Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has been named the Football Writers' Association's Footballer of the Year for 2019, a day after he took home the PFA Young Player of the Year award.
The 24-year-old has netted 29 goals for club and country this season and has proven himself to be an important player in Pep Guardiola's title-chasing squad.
The defending champions are in the midst of the most intense Premier League title race in recent memory as they battle Liverpool to keep the title at the Etihad.
Sterling earned 62 per cent of the votes in the poll and finished 100 votes above second-placed Virgil van Dijk. Sterling's City teammate Sergio Aguero capped off the FWA's top three.
In a statement on FWA's official website, the association's chair Carrie Brown said, "Raheem Sterling is a player of style and a man of substance. More than 70 years ago Charles Buchan, one of the founding fathers of the Footballer Writers’ Association, suggested there be an award presented to the player who by ‘precept and example’ is considered the Footballer of the Year."
"Raheem Sterling is an exemplar of the talent and values our founding fathers sought to reward when they established the FWA in 1947."
"On the pitch, Raheem has evolved into one of the most dangerous forwards in the world. A player long admired for his tactical intelligence, link-up play and quick feet has now added a devastating finish to his game."
"Raheem didn’t set out to be a leader, but he is setting examples in society and in the game which the world is following with interest. I look forward to presenting him with the Sir Stanley Matthews Trophy..."
The FWA's Footballer of the Year award will be officially presented to Sterling on May 9. Meanwhile, Manchester City are scheduled to host Leicester City on May 6 as they attempt maintain their lead at the summit of the English top flight.
