The conclusion of the Premier League is soon upon us with Manchester City being declared champions. The race for Champions League qualification is all but settled, with the relegation battle following suit.
I decided that there isn't much to be interested in other than giving a go at my very own team of the season for the 2020-2021 Premier League.
Here is the team I ultimately came up with. Admittedly there are some notable exclusions from my eleven but such is the case when doing things like these. The Premier League is stacked with great players and if picking eleven of the best players to comprise a team of the season was easy, then the league would have a serious task on their hand.
Nevertheless, this is my starting eleven and here are my justifications for each player:
Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa)
Boasting the 5th best defensive record in the premier league, Aston Villa's custodian fell nothing short of impressive this season. Playing in every game this season, Martínez managed to keep 14 clean sheets and made 3.6 saves per game. He gets the nod, over the likes of Ederson and Mendy because of the sizeable gap in workload while managing to maintain an outstanding clean sheet record.
Right Back: Vladimír Coufal (West Ham)
With 6 assists in 31 appearances, this Czech Republic international had a breakthrough season with the Hammers. He provided the balance on both ends of the pitch. Overlapping and creating chances on the right flank while doing a solid job defensively.
According to FootballCritic, Coufal averaged 1.3 interceptions per game while winning 55% of his tackles. For this, Coufal notches a spot on my team for his overall consistent display.
Centre-Half: Rúben Dias (Manchester City)
My pick for PFA player of the year, Rúben Dias, was the signing of the summer. Completely transforming what was a shaky City defense, Dias has filled the void left by Vincent Kompany. The ball-playing Portuguese star completed the most amount of passes by any player in the entire league. This heavily facilitated Pep Guardiola's style of play. As the manager wants his teams to play out the back, he bolstered the team defensively significantly. City had 18 clean sheets while only conceding 26 goals all season. This is a league best statistic.
Centre-Half: Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
Maguire has received so much criticism throughout the course of the season. He has made silly mistakes early on in the season but has since shored that up and been defensively solid. The Manchester United captain has since gone on to lead his team to their best finish since Sir Alex Ferguson departed the club in 2013. This has also been the club's best defensive record since 2013. Currently they possess the 3rd best defense in the league, keeping 10 clean sheets in the process. Even more impressively, Maguire managed to play all of the games this season up until his recent ankle injury, proving himself to be indefatigable and reliable.
Left-Back: Luke Shaw (Manchester United)
Don't believe this one is debatable. Shaw is in the form of his life. According to Opta Joe, Shaw has created more chances than any player in the league this season. That's more than Kevin De Bruyne and fellow teammate Bruno Fernandes. The left-back has been very consistent this season.
Here is an example of how much Shaw contributes towards his team in a game recently played against Aston Villa:
This one game is an accurate description of how well Shaw has played throughout the season.
Centre-Midfield: İlkay Gündoğan (Manchester City)
An underrated midfielder, Gündoğan went on absolute tear when Kevin De Bruyne got injured.
Putting the team on his back by scoring, assisting and generally orchestrating the Man City attack, İlkay made the Citizens the most potent team in the league.
Contributing 12 goals this season, his tally leads all City players. For his magnificent season, it has earned him a nomination by his club for their Player of the Season.
Centre Attacking Midfield: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
Not his most prolific season but the Belgian midfield maestro still mustered 11 assists despite missing nearly 2 months of the season. With only 22 appearances this season he managed to accomplish this feat, which means that De Bruyne gets an assist almost every other game. For context on how impressive this is, the next closest midfielder is Bruno Fernandes, who averages .34 assists per game. So despite the injuries this season, it would be remiss to ignore the significance of De Bruyne's impact on his team.
Centre Attacking Midfield: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
Bruno was a shoe-in for me and I think his record speaks for itself. Without the influence of Bruno, Manchester United would be a shell of themselves and who can even blame them. Scoring 17 goals and contributing 11 assists. Fernandes ranks 3rd and 2nd respectively in the entire Premiership. With his stellar performances it is beyond a doubt that Bruno Fernandes has been the catalyst behind Manchester United's ascent to the top of English football again.
Right-Winger: Marcus Rashford MBE (Manchester United)
A hero on and off the field, Marcus Rashford has exemplified everything it means to be a Manchester United player. Only 23 years of age, Rashford has 10 goals this season. What has been even more impressive is his playmaking ability with 9 assists this season, a 6th best in the entire premier league.
Rashford averages 2.6 complete dribbles per game, has an 82% pass completion and completes 1.1 crosses per game.
For comparison purposes, Rashford exceeds Mohammed Salah in all these categories except for goals scored and Salah narrowly shaves him in passes completed with 84%. The pick of Rashford is debatable, but I'm standing by it. Rashford is having the best season of his career overall.
Left-Wing: Son Heung-Min (Tottenham Hotspur)
One of my favorite players in the league the Spurs winger had yet another lethal season, scoring 17 goals and making 10 assists. Spurs and Son admittedly slowed down over the course of the season, but other than teammate Harry Kane and Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes, no other player have managed double digits in both the goals and assists statistical categories. This made it an easy decision for Son to be on the Premiership's Best 11.
Striker: Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)
Another one that speaks for itself, Kane leads the league in both goals (21) and assists (13).
After yet another disappointing season with the Spurs, look out for Kane's activity in the summer as I believe he would be on the move.
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