Premier League Team Of The Year Featuring Players From The London Clubs
Chelsea sealed their 6th Premier League title when they beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 at the Hawthorns on Friday night, with still 2 games left to be played. With the 3 points, Chelsea went 10 points clear of 2nd-placed fellow London club Tottenham Hotspur.
The Blues have been a force to reckon with in their first season under the management of Antonio Conte. Despite Tottenham squeezing in from below, they never really looked like finishing second-best.
The two London teams have easily been the best teams in the league by a fair distance. Fellow Londoners Arsenal haven’t had a great season, but they do stand a good chance of finishing in the Champions League spots, making the top four a largely London-dominated affair.
So, we decided to compile the best playing XI of players from the London-based clubs. Who makes the cut? Who misses out? Let’s find out:
PL Team Of The Year Featuring London Clubs’ Players
Formation: 3-4-3
Hugo Lloris (GK)
With Thibaut Courtois being impressive and Petr Cech not faring that bad either, it is Hugo Lloris makes it to the team owing to Tottenham’s better defensive record and the fact that he has kept the most number of clean sheets in the league this term.
Cesar Azpilicueta (CB)
The Spaniard has been a revelation this season in a centre-half role in Chelsea’s three-man defensive system. Extremely solid at the back, contributing while going forward, there have been few better defenders this season than Azpilicueta.
Toby Alderweireld (CB)
One of those few better defenders than Azpi is Tottenham’s Toby Alderweireld. The Belgian international has been absolutely colossal for the North Londoners and it was a surprise that he missed out on a place in the PFA Team of the Year. He doesn’t miss out here though.
David Luiz (CB)
Was a subject of much derision when he was signed by Chelsea in the summer but the Brazilian has proved all the naysayers wrong and has excelled under Conte this season. He takes the final spot in the three-man backline.
Kyle Walker (RM)
Despite all the recent speculations, the Englishman has been, without a doubt, the best right-back in England and is one of the best in his positions in Europe. Has been very important to Tottenham’s rise under Pochettino and makes it to the team.
N’Golo Kante (CM)
Keep the Player of the Year out? Impossible! The Frenchman has done what he did last season with Leicester City and was the cornerstone on which Chelsea’s title success was built upon. With two Premier League winners medal in his first two seasons in England, he has been just brilliant.
Dele Alli (CM)
The youngster has continued his rapid rise to greatness with another outstanding season. 17 goals and 5 assists in the league, he is destined for glory in the future.
Marcos Alonso (LM)
This one is a debatable selection considering that Danny Rose was simply sensational until he got injured. The fact that the Tottenham man went on to miss the last quarter of the season is why Alonso makes it to the team. The Spaniard has scored 6 times and has 3 assists, and has been a huge threat on the left flank for the Blues.
Alexis Sanchez (RW)
Another debatable inclusion when one considers how very good Christian Eriksen has been for Spurs. But the sheer amount of goals that Sanchez has produced – 20 goals and 9 assists to be precise, the number of occasions he has single-handedly carried Arsenal over the line means he edges out Tottenham’s Dane.
Harry Kane (ST)
The Tottenham man just manages to edge out Chelsea’s Diego Costa because of the fact that he has scored more goals from fewer games (21 from 27 matches) compared to Spaniard’s 20 strikes from 34 matches.
Eden Hazard (LW)
Back to his belligerent best after a poor season last time out, Hazard has been the biggest driving force behind Chelsea’s title winning campaign. 15 goals and 5 assists in the league with one excellent display after another, the Belgian has been close to unstoppable.