David de Gea
THE MAN UNITED goalkeeper is surely the only player at the club who has been consistently excellent over the course of the last year. The Spanish international has improved immeasurably since joining the Red Devils and consolidated his world-class status with a man-of-the-match display in the club’s recent 3-0 win over Liverpool.
Seamus Coleman
Ireland’s Seamus Coleman is now routinely regarded as the Premier League’s best attacking right-back. He may have not had the best of starts to this season, partially owing to injury problems, but last year he was deservedly prominent in more or less everyone’s team of the season.
John Terry
Along with Gary Cahill, Terry has been a virtual ever-present in a Chelsea side that defended impeccably for much of 2014. His leadership, organisational skills and footballing intelligence were vital last season, as Chelsea narrowly missed out on the title, while come May, most expect him to be lifting the league trophy triumphantly.
Vincent Kompany
Nudging in narrowly ahead of Gary Cahill, Kompany has been the inspirational backbone of a City side that won the league last year. This season, he has also been one of the side’s better players, even if the club have struggled to recapture their best form at times.
César Azpilicueta
Named by no less than Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher as the Premier League’s best defender “on a technical level,” Azpilicueta has been a revelation since joining Chelsea, ousting Ashley Cole from the left-back slot and rarely looking like making a mistake in the Londoners’ formidable back four.
Eden Hazard
At 23, the Belgian international is already a key player in Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea side. Signing from Lille for £32 million in 2012, he has not disappointed since then, scoring 14 goals in 35 league games last year, and providing the Londoners with some much-needed creativity following Juan Mata’s departure. This season, he has continued where he left off, complementing the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa as Chelsea have risen with relative ease to the top of the table.
Nemanja Matic
Famously sold and then bought back again by Chelsea, Matic has been highly influential in the side since re-joining them last January for £21 million, earning the man-of-the-match award in his full debut as Chelsea ended Man City’s unbeaten home record with a surprise 1-0 victory. He has since gone on to establish himself as the club’s first-choice central midfielder, providing defensive balance to counteract their more eye-catching attacking flair.
Yaya Toure
With an incredible 20 goals in 35 appearances last season, Toure was one of the main reasons why Man City ultimately claimed their second Premier League title in three seasons last May. Along with the rest of his teammates, the Ivorian has not quite managed to hit the same heights this season, but the PFA Player of the Year nominee is nevertheless deserving of his place on the basis of his fantastic form at a crucial time.
Cesc Fabregas
We were somewhat reluctant to include players who have only been around for half the year, nonetheless Fabregas is worth making an exception for. In the Premier League this season, he has made an unmatched 13 assists (the next closest player has eight). Consequently, the way the 27-year-old is playing currently makes you wonder how Barcelona ever let him go.
Luis Suarez
The impact of Luis Suarez is evident — if nothing else — in the form Liverpool have shown since his exit from the club. The Reds are simply not the same team without the Uruguayan star, who was the clear choice for Player of the Season last campaign, with 31 goals in 33 appearances. The Premier League will probably never see his like again.
Sergio Aguero
When Sergio Aguero is on his game, Man City are a match for any team in the world – as Bayern Munich recently discovered. Before picking up a bad injury, the striker was in Suarez-esque form with 14 goals in 15 appearances this season, while 17 goals in 23 appearances last term was not too shabby either.
Subs: Thibaut Courtois, Gary Cahill, Raheem Sterling, Alexis Sanchez, Christian Eriksen, Diego Costa, Daniel Sturridge.
4-4-2 formation:
De Gea
Coleman Kompany Terry Azpilicueta
Fabregas Matic Toure Hazard
Suarez Aguero
Manager of the year: Ronald Koeman
Unlucky not to make the cut: Hugo Lloris, Jose Fonte, Branislav Ivanovic, Pablo Zabaleta, Morgan Schneiderlin, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Charlie Austin.
Who would you pick in your Premier League team of 2014? Let us know in the comments section below.