The 2007/08 Premier League Team of the Year was announced this week with the side as per usual dominated by the top clubs in the land. However, there were some surprising omissions from the chosen line-up. After all, Chelsea could still win this season’s title yet not one of their squad was picked in the chosen eleven. So is the PFA selection what you consider a fair reflection of the best performers in the Premier League or is it a case of putting player’s reputations before consistent performance. As we all know Football is about opinions but are there any absentees you would have chosen in your best eleven? Let’s have a closer look at the merits of this line-up.

                                                                  James
                                                            (Portsmouth)

RB: Sagna      Ferdinand                 Vidic                 Clichy
(Arsenal)        (Man United)    (Man United)      (Arsenal)

Ronaldo           Fabregas               Gerrard             Young
(Man United)       (Arsenal)             (Liverpool)      (Aston Villa)

Adebayor                  Torres
  (Arsenal)              (Liverpool)

Goalkeeper: James Just the Man in Goal?

David James has had a sensational season at the ripe old age of 37 and deservedly claimed the number one slot in the team. His performances for a supposedly unfashionable club have led to an international recall for the keeper who has played for 6 different clubs in a distinguished career. He has helped Pompey to become one of the strongest defensive outfits in the Premier League as they’ve climbed the table to the dizzy heights of 7th as well as reaching the FA Cup final.

James boasts a record of 16 clean-sheets in his 35 Premier League appearances this season (20 clean-sheets in 41 games in all competitions). He has also started every League game this season apart from last tweekend and his consistency has rightly put him above any of his contenders. He has outshone highly-rated keepers such as Petr Cech who’s missed a number of games through injury and Jose Reina who made a few high profile mistakes over the course of the season. Would James have been your number 1 choice?

Right-Back: Bacary Bags the Right Full-back Slot

Few candidates stood out in this position this season as Arsenal’s Bacary Sagna was chosen at right-back. It’s no surprise that the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool have all been linked with Sevilla’s Brazilian full-back Daniel Alves as all have struggled with that position. Rafa Benitez’s team has used Steve Finnan, Jamie Carragher and Alvaro Arbeloa in that role. Chelsea have used Juliano Belletti, Michael Essien and Paulo Ferreira. United Captain Gary Neville has missed the entire season so Wes Brown has deputised. Brown is a decent no-nonsense defender but hasn’t stood out like Sagna whose attacking forays have been as impressive as his defending.

It’s no coincidence that Arsenal crashed out of Europe and their title challenge crumbled in the Sagna’s absence. He’s made 29 League appearances for the Gunners in his debut season and been on the losing side just twice. Next season his PFA Team of the Year place could be under threat from Tottenham’s January signing Alan Hutton who looks already looks a class act. However, for me, the only consistent right-back to compete with Sagna this season is Portsmouth’s Glen Johnson. The former Chelsea man has formed part of an impressive Pompey back 4 alongside the experience of James, Campbell and co. He has also shown his attacking capabilities on more than one occasion this season as he’s matured into an excellent full-back. Do you think Johnson should have picked ahead of Sagna or did the PFA make the correct choice?

Centre-Backs: The Red Devils Rock Solid Defensive Pair

I wouldn’t argue with the PFA choice of the Red Devils pairing of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic for the central defensive slots. After all, the pair have been the mainstay’s of a United defence that has conceded just 21 League goals all season (the best in the Premier League) and a miserly 6 at Old Trafford. However, some may argue the merits of the inclusion of the likes of Kolo Toure and William Gallas of Arsenal, Micah Richards and Richard Dunne of Man City and the player I believe is unfortunate not to be involved - Villa’s Martin Laursen. The Great Dane has been in inspirational form for much of the season. He has missed just 45 minutes of Premier League football and weighed in with 6 goals in the process. His reputation for being injury-prone has been well and truly laid to rest. Could any other defender have been selected ahead of the United pair?

Left-Back: Clichy Clinches a Role in the Side

Arsenal’s French full-back Gael Clichy was selected for the PFA Team of the Year on the back of a consistently superb season for the Gunners. The 22-year-old has banished any doubts over his ability to step into Ashley Cole’s boots after playing in all 36 League appearances for his club this season (35 starts). His pace in both defensive and attacking areas has been outstanding and surely an international call-up beckons. However, such is the strength of France in that position he will have to overcome both Barcelona’s Eric Abidal and Manchester United’s Patrice Evra to win a cap.

The Red Devils full-back had a case to be included in the PFA team himself as the former Monaco man has excelled in his 31 League appearances this season. Another player to be overlooked yet enjoyed an excellent season is Everton’s Joleon Lescott. The former Wolves man has featured in all 52 of the Toffees matches this season (50 starts) and scored 9 goals in the process. Would you argue with Clichy’s selection given that Lescott and Evra have also been outstanding?

Right-Midfield: Ronaldo Remains the Number 1 Man

The choice for right-midfield would have took all of a second to choose - Cristiano Ronaldo. Whether you love him or hate him it’s impossible to not rate him the best player in the Premier League right now. After all, he is the top scorer with a staggering 28 League goals (38 in all competitions). Was there any competition for the Portuguese poser in this position? Well the answer is no yet young David Bentley of Blackburn is worth mentioning after an excellent campaign in which he has broken consistently into the national side. His summer rest after withdrawing from the European U21 Championships obviously paid off as he has started 45 of Rovers 46 games this season scoring 9 goals. His time will surely come!

Centre-Midfield: Reputation More than Substance for Stevie G and Cesc

Both players selected are without a shadow of a doubt 2 of the best midfielders in the country but it can be argued that neither player has excelled consistently throughout the entire season.

Cesc Fabregas started the campaign on fire scoring 11 goals in his first 16 appearances in all competitions. However, since those first 16 games the talented Spaniard has scored a mere 2 goals in 29 appearances as like his team his season ran out of steam. Arsenal’s season climaxed with high profile defeats in both the League and cup competitions as the young guns failed to handle the burden of expectation. He remains arguably the finest playmaker in the division and I would argue he’s had a far better season than his PFA team-mate in central midfield: Stevie Gerrard.

Ok, so the Liverpool Captain has netted 21 goals in all competitions (11 in the Premier League) but whilst his Red side struggled to keep up with their title rivals, so did he. He had an incredible scoring run of 10 goals in 11 games from October to December but has failed to shine in a number of Liverpool’s most important games. I would argue that less glamorous midfielders Gareth Barry and Mathieu Flamini have been just as impressive in different ways. Flamini stepped out of Gilberto’s shadow at the Emirates this season establishing himself as one of the hardest working defensive midfielders in the Premier League. His selfless work allowed the likes of Alexander Hleb and Fabregas to shine for the Gunners and to draw many of the plaudits than should have been aimed at him.

The same can be said for England international Gareth Barry who’s led by example for Villa this season. He may not have the reputation of Stevie G but he’s integral to the Villans’ superb campaign. He has been a model of consistently, starting 38 of his club’s 39 matches and weighing in with an impressive 8 goals despite playing in a far deeper role than international team-mate Gerrard.

Other notable midfielders who’ve enjoyed great season’s are Man City’s Elano who had a superb start to his Premier League career but faded fast whilst Pompey’s Sulley Muntari had a major influence on Harry Redknapp’s side with his athleticism and shooting ability. However, it’s hard to look past Gerrard, Fabregas, Barry and Flamini as the main candidates for the midfield slots. So would you have backed Barry for the team or are Fabregas and Gerrard the best of the best in their positions?

Left-Midfield: Too Much Too Young? Was City’s Bulgarian Better?

The choice of Villa’s Ashley Young is arguably the most controversial of selections as there are a number of Premier League stars who easily could be argued to have performed just as well as him if not better. The 22-year-old has scored 8 goals in an excellent season where he’s played and started in 35 of his club’s 36 Premier League games. His pace and ability to cross from both feet has been a major influence on the Villans superb season. However, for me the star of the season in that position would have to be Manchester City’s Martin Petrov.

The Bulgarian has been a revelation following his £6million move from Atletico Madrid scoring 5 goals and playing a huge part in countless others. His pace and ability to beat players makes him the stand out attacking star of City’s team this season. Other notable left-sided stars who could have been included are Everton’s super Spaniard Mikel Arteta and Arsenal’s fleet-footed Belarusian Alexander Hleb. So would you have chosen Villa’s wing wonder ahead of these players or would you disagree with Young’s inclusion?

Strikers: Emmanuel Earns his Spot in the side whilst Torres Debut Season Deserves Recognition

It’s hard to argue over the inclusion of forward pair Emmanuel Adebayor and
Forward Torres as the PFA team’s front two. After all, only Player of Year Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more than this duo. The Togolese man mountain has netted 28 goals and has established himself as the ‘main man’ at the Emirates replacing legendary Thierry Henry in the hearts of Arsenal fans. At 24-years-old he has a bit of everything to his game, strong as an ox, superb in the air, a great touch and a good turn of pace.

Torres debut Premier League season has been astonishing. He has netted 22 League goals whilst proving any doubters over his ability to perform in England completely wrong. The only negative that can be argued about the Spaniard is his inability to score away from Anfield. After all, only 2 of his 22 goals were in away games and even they were against minnows Derby and Boro. However, his overall record is still excellent and there are few strikers who can compare to him this season.

One such exception is Paraguayan Roque Santa Cruz who has netted 17 League goals in his first season with Blackburn. The former Bayern man has been a revelation in an unfashionable side and a move to one of the big 4 could catapult him into the reckoning next season. Other notable striking stars who were ignored by the PFA are Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Yakubu, Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov. However, none of these forwards has come close to the goalscoring exploits of the two that were picked.

So what would’ve been your line-up for team of the year? Would you have included any of the Chelsea squad who are on course for a Premier League and Champions League double? Or perhaps you would’ve gone for more players who’ve excelled for unfashionable clubs rather than those with reputations due to the status of the ‘elite four’? We’d like to hear your opinions on whether this season’s PFA Team of the Year is reflective of the best the Premier League has to offer.

Written by Christian Goodbrand