Mohamed Salah was named Premier League Player of the Year on Saturday. The Liverpool forward made a major contribution to the league title of Arne Slot’s club. Salah’s teammate Ryan Gravenberch was voted the biggest talent.
The 32-year-old Salah had 28 goals and 18 assists in the Premier League this season. This makes him most likely to be the top scorer in the English competition. Sunday is the last matchday. Alexander Isak of Newcastle United is second on the top scorers list with 23 goals.
Salah also won the award in the 2017/2018 season and is the fifth player to be named Player of the Year in England for the second time. Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Vidic and Kevin De Bruyne previously did so.
After a long wait, Salah recently extended his contract with Liverpool, as did captain Virgil van Dijk. The Egyptian could become the first player to receive the award for the third time next year.
Only two Dutch players have been voted Premier League Player of the Year. These are Ruud van Nistelrooij (2002/2003) and Van Dijk (2018/2019). The winner is determined on the basis of votes from the public and a panel of football experts. It is a different award than the election of the English players’ union, which Robin van Persie and Dennis Bergkamp also won once.
Not only the award for best player went to Liverpool, but also the one for Young Player of the Year. In that category, Gravenberch was preferred over Dean Huijsen, among others, who will move from Bournemouth to Real Madrid after this season.
The 23-year-old Gravenberch has had a strong season at Liverpool. The eighteen-time Oranje international played 36 matches and provided 4 assists.
Champion Liverpool concludes the Premier League on Sunday with a home match against Crystal Palace. ‘The Reds’ have not won three games in a row after the championship match against Tottenham Hotspur (5-1 victory).