Just like the fight between Arsenal and Chelsea for the coveted Premier League title, the race to be crowned the PFA player of the year is still on. In fact it is likely to be much closer than the title race unless Jose Mourinho and Chelsea suffer a major collapse.
So any of the six contenders could still potentially win it, especially with some storming performances in the last few games. They should not carry more weight but the voters are human and will remember recent games more. Many people seem to think that Eden Hazard of Chelsea is the favourite but Arsenal’s own Alexis Sanchex is running him close and Arsene Wenger still thinks the Chilean international can claim the prize.
As reported by Arsenal.com, the Frenchman feels the fact that our super striker is in his first season at a new club and in a new league and country should count in his favour. Obviously Wenger wants Alexis to win it but he also wants the 26-year old to keep up and even improve his performances in this final crucial part of the season for Arsenal.
But while giving Alexis this extra incentive to play out of his skin, firstly against Chelsea and his rival Hazard on Sunday, the Prof feels that his star player will be back in contention again next season even if he is disappointed this time.
Wenger said, “Alexis had a big impact and let’s not forget that for Hazard it is not the first season but for Alexis it is.
“He will give him a fight and if Alexis doesn’t make it this year, he will give him a fight as well for next season.
“I think everybody would agree that Hazard has had a great season and one of the aspects of Sunday’s game will be to keep him quiet.
“He has found maturity that he did not have before. I believe his final ball is better, his personality on the pitch is stronger, the finishing aspect of his game is much better than before. He can turn games when it’s 0-0 and when it’s tight. That’s always a sign of top quality.”
It is and it is also something that Alexis has in his locker. In fact it could be argued that Arsenal, with Giroud, Cazorla, Ramsey and Ozil have more of these game changing players now. Let’s hope at least one of them steps up at the weekend.
How do you rate Alexis’ chances of the PFA award?