Your PL team of the season

sullydnl

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Martinez*
Cancelo - Stones - Dias* - Shaw*
Gundogan* - Bruno* - KDB
Salah - Kane* - Son​

The players with an asterisk are nailed on imo and don't need any explaining.

There may well be better CB picks than Stones but seeing as he was a big part of the clean sheet run that effectively won them the league, I just opted for the City CB pairing.

Grealish was better than Son while he was playing but he has missed the last 13 games. That's too much for me not to opt for Son ahead of him. Son was very productive and when he did that producing doesn't particularly matter to me. Goals at the start of the season count as much as goals at any other point.

Salah has produced 20 goals but been quite poor in general play in a lot of games. Meanwhile KDB has been excellent in general play but has thus far produced less than half the output he did last season. I didn't leave them out but one could, arguably. Certainly if you were picking a set up that could only fit one of Bruno/KDB then it would be Bruno.
 
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Hughes35

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For me:


----------------------------Martinez--------------------
Coufal-----------Diaz--------------Maguire------------Shaw
-----------------------------Soucek------------------------------
-----------------Gundogan---------Bruno--------------------
Salah----------------------Kane----------------------Grealish

Shout outs to the below:

------------------------------------------Areola----------------------------------
James/Ayling---------Fofana-----------Stones--------------------Justin
-----------------------------------Rice/Bissouma----------------------------
-----------------------Lingard/Dallas------------Mount----------------------
Rafinha/Foden-------------Bamford/Iheanacho-----------------Son
 

SadlerMUFC

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------------------------------------------Martinez-----------------------------------------------
Cancelo------------Dias------------------------------Maguire----------------Shaw
--------------------------------------------Rice----------------------------------------------------
--------------------DeBruyne---------------------------Bruno--------------------------------
Salah---------------------------------Kane----------------------------------------Son

My second team of the year would be:

--------------------------------------------Pope---------------------------------------
AWB----------------Stones----------------------Evans-------------Digne
-----------------------------------------Rodrigo-------------------------------------
---------------------Mount------------------------------Gundogan--------------
Foden-----------------------------Calvert-Lewin------------------Grealish
 

SadlerMUFC

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I really like Grealish but I'm confused at how so many people can have him in ahead of Son? Son has 17 goals and 10 assists. Grealish has 6 goals and 10 assists. It's a no brainer for me. Perhaps if Grealish played more he'd be up there, but with only a little more than half a season under his belt it has to be Son...
 

Dancfc

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Ederson

Cancelo
Dias
Silva
Shaw

Rice
Gundogan
De Bruyne

Foden
Kane
Rashford

Honourable mentions: Martinez, Mendy, Stones, Rodri, Mount, Pogba, Fernandes, Grealish, Son, Salah.
 

Gentleman Jim

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Or, you know, the other 5 players. :D
So
Walker over Cancelo. Pep goes for Walker in big games.
Stones over Maguire. Stones has proven bond and success with Dias who we both selected.
Grealish, Bissouma, over KDB and Bruno.
Bissouma has all the signs that he could be the next Kante or Fernandinho but with a higher engine at this stage. He would (and will) become a superb player with top coaching at a top team.
Grealish has injury issues but all the skill and football intelligence you need.
I don’t think KDB and Bruno would compliment each other at all as both would be demanding the ball.
Foden and Mahrez the most dangerous players in City’s team for the last few weeks.
 

Grylte

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And as for picking Emerson over Martinez, are people just looking at the clean sheet table again?
What? Are you saying it's less impressive to get clean sheets behind City's defence (team)?! :)

I bet even my chubby 41 year old ass would get a couple clean sheets pr season as gk for them, and i have never been a goalie!
 

Dancfc

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What? Are you saying it's less impressive to get clean sheets behind City's defence (team)?! :)

I bet even my chubby 41 year old ass would get a couple clean sheets pr season as gk for them, and i have never been a goalie!
Claudio Bravo kind of debunk's that theory.
 

Withnail

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What? Are you saying it's less impressive to get clean sheets behind City's defence (team)?! :)

I bet even my chubby 41 year old ass would get a couple clean sheets pr season as gk for them, and i have never been a goalie!
:lol:

I just don't believe clean sheets tell you how good a keeper is. Yes, your keeper might pull off some saves but it's much more of a team effort.

There's a lot more information available now for keepers:

I'd be more inclined to look at save % in conjuction with how well they are performing against post shot Xg.

Ederson is lagging behind the likes of Areola, Allison and Martinez by some distance. He also is facing less shots and less dangerous shots behind that City defence.

https://fbref.com/en/comps/9/keepersadv/Premier-League-Stats
 

SqualorVictoria

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:lol:

I just don't believe clean sheets tell you how good a keeper is. Yes, your keeper might pull off some saves but it's much more of a team effort.

There's a lot more information available now for keepers:

I'd be more inclined to look at save % in conjuction with how well they are performing against post shot Xg.

Ederson is lagging behind the likes of Areola, Allison and Martinez by some distance. He also is facing less shots and less dangerous shots behind that City defence.

https://fbref.com/en/comps/9/keepersadv/Premier-League-Stats
Ederson definitely deserves a shout though thanks to his distribution. He plays the biggest role of GKs in the team's attacking output, so that offsets a lot. I'm not saying he deserves to be in front of Martinez this season though, but he is there or thereabouts this season.
 

SadlerMUFC

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Claudio Bravo kind of debunk's that theory.
Martinez has made 123 saves this year compared to Ederson's 60. So Martinez has made twice as many saves but only 4 less clean sheets. Martinez is the obvious choice to keeper with Pope second after making 114 saves and keeping 11 clean sheets. Of Ederson's 18 clean sheets I probably could have kept 14 of them :lol: :lol: :lol:
 

Klopper76

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:lol:

Complete clogger.
In terms of our players, Phillips has been one of the better ones this season (partly because the rest have been crap). No one expected him to even play this season let alone perform like he has.

That being said he won't be playing next season.
 

Dancfc

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Martinez has made 123 saves this year compared to Ederson's 60. So Martinez has made twice as many saves but only 4 less clean sheets. Martinez is the obvious choice to keeper with Pope second after making 114 saves and keeping 11 clean sheets. Of Ederson's 18 clean sheets I probably could have kept 14 of them :lol: :lol: :lol:
It doesn't work like that, when inferior keepers go in the nets previously confident defenses suddenly aren't as confident (case in point when you had Ben Foster in nets instead of VDS at the start of a season once).

Furthermore keeping concentration when you don't have much to do is one of the hardest tasks for a goalkeeper, it's why many look great for a middling teams/teams that cannot defend but are all at sea when trying to make the step up.
 

Withnail

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Ederson definitely deserves a shout though thanks to his distribution. He plays the biggest role of GKs in the team's attacking output, so that offsets a lot. I'm not saying he deserves to be in front of Martinez this season though, but he is there or thereabouts this season.
You don't get into team of the year just because you suit Pep's style. He's not the best keeper in the league and certainly not this year.
 

ivaldo

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So
Walker over Cancelo. Pep goes for Walker in big games.
Stones over Maguire. Stones has proven bond and success with Dias who we both selected.
Grealish, Bissouma, over KDB and Bruno.
Bissouma has all the signs that he could be the next Kante or Fernandinho but with a higher engine at this stage. He would (and will) become a superb player with top coaching at a top team.
Grealish has injury issues but all the skill and football intelligence you need.
I don’t think KDB and Bruno would compliment each other at all as both would be demanding the ball.
Foden and Mahrez the most dangerous players in City’s team for the last few weeks.
That's not how team of the season works. You know that, right?
 

Bwuk

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Foden has only started 15 games in the league. Ridiculous.

Martinez
Coufal - Fofana - Dias - Shaw
Rice
Bruno - Gundogan
Salah - Kane - Son​
 

SadlerMUFC

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It doesn't work like that, when inferior keepers go in the nets previously confident defenses suddenly aren't as confident (case in point when you had Ben Foster in nets instead of VDS at the start of a season once).

Furthermore keeping concentration when you don't have much to do is one of the hardest tasks for a goalkeeper, it's why many look great for a middling teams/teams that cannot defend but are all at sea when trying to make the step up.
Could you be anymore cliche? Take nothing away from Ederson. He's a fantastic keeper and just may be the best in the league. Doesn't change the fact that Martinez has had the best season this year and fully deserves to be top of the list. If Ederson wants to get the recognition he just may very well deserve then he should move to a club like Villa as well. If he wants to win trophies, then stay right where he is...
 

Dancfc

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Could you be anymore cliche? Take nothing away from Ederson. He's a fantastic keeper and just may be the best in the league. Doesn't change the fact that Martinez has had the best season this year and fully deserves to be top of the list. If Ederson wants to get the recognition he just may very well deserve then he should move to a club like Villa as well. If he wants to win trophies, then stay right where he is...
I was more challenging the playing down of Ederson than anything else.

The idea that anyone can sit behind a solid defense and sweep up on clean sheets is utter nonsense as has been proven on many occasions.
 

Noot

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I find Foden's appearance in Neville and Carragher's teams very puzzling. Salah far more deserving.
 

Gentleman Jim

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That's not how team of the season works. You know that, right?
I picked a team that on this seasons form I would back to win a lot of matches. No more, no less. Sorry for missing the point.
I came here to have a bit of fun and chat but some seem to have got upset that I came on with an opinion.
I admitted I made a daft remark about Bruno but other than that the players I've selected have all been chosen by other posters.
Don't want to say to a thread bully (not you) what I would really like to say so I'm now on thread ignore.
 

ZolaWasMagic

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I find Foden's appearance in Neville and Carragher's teams very puzzling. Salah far more deserving.
I found Nev;s TOTY a bit bizarre. Rashford should not be in there IMO.or Foden
 

SqualorVictoria

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You don't get into team of the year just because you suit Pep's style. He's not the best keeper in the league and certainly not this year.
It's not about whether he suits your style, it's about how many wins you get out of him. Now obviously that's where exact science won't help, but it's not exactly a stretch to say he is better for your team as your 'average' keeper who is also 'average' in build-up, is it?
 

Riz

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Its too top and bottom heavy. Something like 10 goals in first 11 and then 5 in 23 and dont forget, its he and Kane who had all of the ball under Jose going forward. He just disappeared.
Spurs just dont have enough of the ball going forward to have 2 players in a team of the season, they rarely attacked and are swamped by any decent side they face. Plus he doesnt do much outside of taking a shot. When Spurs need a goal its either Kane holding it up for them or they dont get into the opposition half at all.
Players like Rashford drive the game, his interplay with Shaw has been fantastic this year. Grealish has been on another level to Son, Id even have Werner there. Id also jig the formation and work Antonio in front of Son if it came to it.
I can’t take your opinion seriously if you think Antonio and fecking Werner are more deserving for the team of the season than Son. :lol:
 

Withnail

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It's not about whether he suits your style, it's about how many wins you get out of him. Now obviously that's where exact science won't help, but it's not exactly a stretch to say he is better for your team as your 'average' keeper who is also 'average' in build-up, is it?
Not the point. He's suits City for his distribution but he's not the best keeper on the league. He's quite a bit below the top guys at the actual basic things a goalie is supposed to do... the main one being making saves.
 

James Peril

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I have no idea why Rashford is mentioned in a single team on here, he’s been highly average and I hope he takes a big step next season. Less goals than Chris Wood, hot and cold, dry spells… far away from the consistent level a United-forward needs to be at. If Grealish suddenly signed, I’d say Rashford’s spot on the left was in danger from day 1. Surely we’d find a place for him and he’d play a lot, but yeah.. he’s not team of the year-material this time around.
 

DoneDaDa

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Mendy
Cancelo-Dias-Fofana-Shaw
Bissouma
Bruno-Gundo
Mahrez-Kane-Son
 

SqualorVictoria

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Not the point. He's suits City for his distribution but he's not the best keeper on the league. He's quite a bit below the top guys at the actual basic things a goalie is supposed to do... the main one being making saves.
Why wouldn't it be a point how many wins your player brings you via his contribution? It's quite literally the point. It's not too far from the truth to say that in part thanks to Ederson, City concede less shots, so he's the living example of a keeper not only contributing via saving shots. If you take this from the American MVP point of view, it's not too far-fetched to say Ederson has a bigger influence in contributing to City's wins as even maybe Martinez had.
 

Withnail

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Why wouldn't it be a point how many wins your player brings you via his contribution? It's quite literally the point. It's not too far from the truth to say that in part thanks to Ederson, City concede less shots, so he's the living example of a keeper not only contributing via saving shots. If you take this from the American MVP point of view, it's not too far-fetched to say Ederson has a bigger influence in contributing to City's wins as even maybe Martinez had.
He's just not the best keeper in the league mate.

Besides it was the same thing last year. Everyone picked Pope because he had the most clean sheets but he wasn't the best keeper in the league then either.
 
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Noot

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Its too top and bottom heavy. Something like 10 goals in first 11 and then 5 in 23 and dont forget, its he and Kane who had all of the ball under Jose going forward. He just disappeared.
Spurs just dont have enough of the ball going forward to have 2 players in a team of the season, they rarely attacked and are swamped by any decent side they face. Plus he doesnt do much outside of taking a shot. When Spurs need a goal its either Kane holding it up for them or they dont get into the opposition half at all.
Players like Rashford drive the game, his interplay with Shaw has been fantastic this year. Grealish has been on another level to Son, Id even have Werner there. Id also jig the formation and work Antonio in front of Son if it came to it.
Werner? I can think of few seasons where a single player has been as notoriously awful as him this year.
 

Noot

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Not the point. He's suits City for his distribution but he's not the best keeper on the league. He's quite a bit below the top guys at the actual basic things a goalie is supposed to do... the main one being making saves.
Is he, though?

What are you basing this on? It's a prejudice that people have in this country that a goalkeeper who is good with their feet can't possibly also be good with their hands because if they are it means that the "English way" might not actually be the best way after all. In reality Ederson is a very good shot-stopper who regularly makes great stops and very rarely makes errors related to handling or reflexes. His (rare) mistakes are actually almost always to do with his footwork.

Put him in a side that sees shots peppered at him like Burnley or even a side like United and I'm confident this opinion would evaporate.
 

Withnail

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Is he, though?

What are you basing this on? It's a prejudice that people have in this country that a goalkeeper who is good with their feet can't possibly also be good with their hands because if they are it means that the "English way" might not actually be the best way after all. In reality Ederson is a very good shot-stopper who regularly makes great stops and very rarely makes errors related to handling or reflexes. His (rare) mistakes are actually almost always to do with his footwork.

Put him in a side that sees shots peppered at him like Burnley or even a side like United and I'm confident this opinion would evaporate.
I posted more detail earlier.

It's based on his save %, performance against post shot xg and how dangerous/frequent the shots he's faced have been compared to the others.

https://fbref.com/en/comps/9/keepersadv/Premier-League-Stats
 

Noot

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I posted more detail earlier.

It's based on his save %, performance against post shot xg and how dangerous/frequent the shots he's faced have been compared to the others.

https://fbref.com/en/comps/9/keepersadv/Premier-League-Stats
I don't really think we should pay too much attention to stats like that. For example, Matt Ryan, who is an unmitigated disaster, is above Ederson in that list. Edouard Mendy, who is by all accounts at least one of the top 5 'keepers in the league this season, is ranked down in 17th, barely above Jordan Pickford and Aaron Ramsdale who are also shocking by PL standards.

Truthfully I just don't think stats are a great way to look at goalkeepers (except errors leading to goals). The better question would be how many goals has Ederson cost us? How many has he conceded that he probably should have saved? In both cases the answer is very few. It's all well and good to say he saves fewer xG than the average goalkeeper but if you can't actually point to those errors then it can't really be used as a black mark against him.
 

Withnail

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I don't really think we should pay too much attention to stats like that. For example, Matt Ryan, who is an unmitigated disaster, is above Ederson in that list. Edouard Mendy, who is by all accounts at least one of the top 5 'keepers in the league this season, is ranked down in 17th, barely above Jordan Pickford and Aaron Ramsdale who are also shocking by PL standards.

Truthfully I just don't think stats are a great way to look at goalkeepers (except errors leading to goals). The better question would be how many goals has Ederson cost us? How many has he conceded that he probably should have saved? In both cases the answer is very few. It's all well and good to say he saves fewer xG than the average goalkeeper but if you can't actually point to those errors then it can't really be used as a black mark against him.
How he performs against post shot XG does tell you how many he conceded that he should have saved.

It it's a negative number he's worse than average and a positive number he's above average.

I think your opposition to the stats points to my initial complaint. It's seems like trusting perception over reality.

Ryan you can discount as he only played 3 games for Arsenal and they don't seem to have the Brighton info so there isn't enough data. The filter to take out players who don't have enough minutes doesn't seem to be working at the moment.

Why is Mendy in the top 5?

I dont watch a huge amount of Chelsea games. Anytime I've seen Mendy he seems solid enough but I haven't been overly impressed. Granted he's a step up from Kepa but who isn't?
 

Eternitiy

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Not the point. He's suits City for his distribution but he's not the best keeper on the league. He's quite a bit below the top guys at the actual basic things a goalie is supposed to do... the main one being making saves.
His distribution and ability on the ball for a goalkeeper is the best I've ever seen. Extraordinary player. I doubt City would swap him for any other goalkeeper.
 

RooneyLegend

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---------------Martinez------------------
Coufal---Dias----Stones---Shaw
------------------Rodri---------------------
-------------Silva----Gundogan-----
------Salah----Kane-----Grealish
 

Bearded One

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Why do lots of people have Cancelo in their team? Since our own dear Shaw sent him to the woods, the man is yet to recover.