Sky Sports’ end-of-season awards, including best player, manager, game, signing and a whole lot more…. | Football News

After another memorable season of Premier League football, the Sky Sports football writers have got together to pick their end-of-season gongs covering everything from the best game, to the most outstanding save and young player.

Sunday 25th May 3:00pm


Kick off 4:00pm

Best player: Mohamed Salah

When a player breaks the record for goal involvements in a 38-game Premier League season and fires his team to the title, it makes this category pretty routine. Step forward, Mo Salah.

The Liverpool star has taken his game to new levels at the age of 32, posting career-best figures for assists to go with his huge haul of goals. Yes, Virgil van Dijk has been imperious at the back, yes, Alexander Isak and Declan Rice have shone for Newcastle and Arsenal respectively.

But Salah has been involved in over 54 per cent of Liverpool’s goals. Simply, they wouldn’t have won the title without him.
Peter Smith

Sunday 25th May 4:00pm


Kick off 4:00pm

Best manager – Arne Slot

Nuno Espirito Santo needs an honourable mention here. Nottingham Forest were tipped by some for relegation, but he has led them to the European places. If the season ends in Champions League qualification, it would have been an incredible campaign for the Nottingham Forest boss.

Eddie Howe is also a worthy candidate after leading Newcastle United to Carabao Cup glory and potentially the Champions League, but it’s hard to look past Arne Slot.

Many thought there’d be a drop off from Liverpool after Jurgen Klopp’s exit, but testament to the job Slot has done at Anfield, there hasn’t been.

His first season in English football has ended in the title, which is an incredible achievement.
Oliver Yew

Signing of the Season: Nikola Milenkovic

Nikola Milenkovic has had an incredible debut season for Forest. The £12m summer signing has been instrumental under Nuno and fans have marvelled at the brilliant partnership he’s forged with fellow centre-back Murillo.

Milenkovic ranks inside the top five for duel success both on the ground and in the air, mixing with likes of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

The 27-year-old Serbia international has also bagged four goals for Forest this season, just pipping Dean Huijsen who shone in his brief but fantastic spell at Bournemouth.
Emilie Mwanza

Best young player: Myles Lewis-Skelly

It became pretty obvious after Myles Lewis-Skelly’s full Arsenal debut that he would go on to become something big.

The teenage left-back’s first Gunners start came in December but there was just something about him – his football arrogance, his ability to take the ball under pressure without fear or error and his consistency.

Since then, he has become first-choice in that role and with England’s left-back role at his feet too – a meteoric and unchallenged rise.

And there is more to come – expect Lewis-Skelly to transition into midfield in the coming years.
Sam Blitz

Best game: Newcastle 3-3 Liverpool

Last season’s top two, Man City and Arsenal, served up a pair of contrasting classics, starting with a bad-tempered, but intriguing four-goal classic at the Etihad in September that appeared to be going the visitors’ way – that is, until John Stones’s scrambled 98th-minute equaliser sent the home fans crazy, while breaking Gunners’ hearts after almost holding on for the win since half-time with just 10 players.

The return meeting at the Emirates in February may have lacked that tension, but the quality of Arsenal’s five-star display that ripped the champions apart more than made up for it, with young left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly showing just why we selected him as our Young Player of the Year.

However, our game of the season features the champions, although it is not their drama-filled 2-2 draw in the final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park in February when James Tarkowski thundered home a 98th-minute equaliser that made the famous old ground shake.

Rather it is Liverpool’s visit to Newcastle United in early December that was this campaign’s standout match and not just because it finished 3-3! The clash in the north east had all the ingredients that make up a classic, being played under the St James’ Park lights, producing an electric atmosphere as a result, and plenty of goals, including a contender for strike of the season from Magpies forward Alexander Isak and then late drama when the hosts levelled matters.

All in all, a real feast of football to showcase the brilliance of the Premier League.
Rich Morgan

Best goal: Kaoru Mitoma [Brighton vs Chelsea]

“The touch is as good as anything we will see in the Premier League this season. It’s Messi-like.”

Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher’s description summed up Kaoru Mitoma’s goal against Chelsea up perfectly. Mitoma could have asked for any higher praise than being compared to Messi, one of the greatest ever to play the game.

The touch to bring Bart Verbruggen’s long punt downfield is sublime, the turn and change of direction to create space for the shot is sensational, and the whipped finish into the bottom corner rounded off a special Premier League moment.
Oliver Yew

Save of the season – David Raya vs Aston Villa

Matz Sels and David Raya have kept more clean sheets than any other Premier League goalkeeper this season, so it should be of no surprise to see their names featuring heavily in this category.

In fact, Sels’ player-of-the-match performance to prevent Liverpool from taking all three points at Nottingham Forest in January features several world-class stops that all came under consideration.

There were several other saves that caught the eye during the season, such as Emi Martinez displaying ridiculous reactions to prevent Chris Wood’s header from crossing the line at the City Ground in December, Andre Onana diving full length to deny Crystal Palace’s Ismaila Sarr and Alphonse Areola somehow keeping out Mohamed Salah’s close-range strike at the London Stadium before Christmas.

However, the nod goes to the aforementioned Raya, who helped Arsenal inflict on Aston Villa their only home loss in the league this season with a simply ridiculous second-half stop to keep out Ollie Watkins’ header.

The Arsenal No 1 first had to touch Amadou Onana’s deflected shot on to the bar, before immediately springing back up to his feet and pushing away to safety the England striker’s point-blank header, with Gary Neville exclaiming on commentary: “How Raya reacts, wow!”
Rich Morgan

Best moment: James Tarkowski’s late equaliser vs Liverpool

A moment that will live forever in history. James Tarkowski crashing in a 98th-minute equaliser in the final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park. Forty-one wins apiece for Everton and Liverpool at the Grand Old Lady. Forever. Hit play on our video above and drink in those extraordinary scenes again…
Peter Smith

Ruben Amorim’s self-deprecating quote of the season

Too many to choose from. The Man Utd head coach has been relegation-level on the pitch, but Quadruple-winning in the press conference room.

“We’re maybe the worst team in the history of Man Utd,” wins it though. That came in January after a loss to Brighton. Nobody actually expected him to follow through with it though…
Sam Blitz

Jones Knows’ Best tip of the season

A season of profit has been secured for the fifth season running with the best bets advised in the column leading to +18.7. It’s been a bumpy ride involving near misses and losing runs but the winners have flowed nicely. A spell of betting against Manchester City at short prices before it was trendy to do so made me look very clever indeed, correctly calling wins for Tottenham (0-4), Bournemouth (2-1) and Brighton (2-1) during City’s mid-season wobble was a memorable spell.

There have been longshot treble wins at 10/1 and 14/1 – a particular highlight was Joelinton’s card for Newcastle at Aston Villa copping the treble after Brentford beat Brighton and Palace and Bournemouth sailed under the 2.5 goals line in a 0-0 draw.

And we’ve finished the season strongly, nailing a lovely 10/1 winning angle on 32+ fouls being committed in the Europa League final.
Lewis Jones

Jones Knows’ Worst tip of the season

Learning to accept being wrong is a key part of keeping a sane headspace when it comes to making betting decisions and putting your neck on the line. And I’ve had plenty of practice this season.

Let’s start with Tottenham to finish in the top four and Dominic Solanke to score 20 or more goals shall we at 12/1? Or what about Leif Davis – the Ipswich assist-king of a full back – who I was excited about in the top assist markets in pre-season at 100/1? Just one assist was it Leif? Ah well.

In fact, my reading for most of the season on the newly-promoted teams was downright ugly. Thinking Leicester were a “barnstorming price” to beat Everton at Goodison Park at 7/2 quickly went down the drain after just 10 seconds when Abdoulaye Doucoure sent the hosts on their way to the most comfortable 4-0 win you’re ever likely to see.
Lewis Jones

Sky Sports to show 215 live PL games

From next season, Sky Sports’ Premier League coverage will increase from 128 matches to at least 215 games exclusively live.

And 80 per cent of all televised Premier League games next season are on Sky Sports.