And the winner is....

Congratulations to Gareth Bale, who last night was crowned the PFA’s Player of the First Half of the Season. Or at least that’s what the title should be called given the Welshman has missed a significant amount of football in recent months and his most electrifying performances came before the new year.

PFA Winner Bale

That’s not to say Bale has not had a good season; he has been exceptional and caused defences both at home and abroad untold problems with his pace and unrivalled ability to deliver pin point crosses on the run. But it must be said that he is still finding his way back to top form following a back injury that’s restricted his appearances in recent months. No matter, that’s not a problem when it comes to the PFA player of the year awards.

For some reason, the PFA asks its members to make their nominations for the end of the season awards in February. With three months worth of football still to play, and with honours at the top and bottom of the table still to be decided, it’s no surprise that the winners of the awards are often players who don’t retain their consistency over the course of the season.

The PFA and others may argue that with professional footballers at 92 league clubs to accept nominations from, it’s a lengthy process and that’s why players have to be balloted in February. I have two issues with this: firstly we’re able to count votes from the entire country in a matter of hours on election night, so I’m not convinced the PFA needs a three month lead time. And secondly, if it does take so long, why don’t they still start the process later and then make the announcement in the close season? I’m sill confused as to why we have to have the end of year awards ceremony a month before the end of year. They could even use the Community Shield as a platform to announce the winner; closing one season just as another starts.

Under the current system we can be left with winners who enjoy fantastic starts to the year but for one reason or another, aren’t able to sustain those levels throughout the duration of the season. In Bale’s case, it was no fault of his own; his form was terrific until curtailed by injury. 

And of course, with a month to go Bale may well reach his pre-Christmas form before the season ends. But waiting until the latter part of the season before asking players to vote would have afforded them time to judge the season objectively, and really consider who had shone the brightest over the course of 38 games. It just feels for the moment that Bale has won the award based on his performances in the autumn and not over the course of the season. 

The same system also applies to the young player of the year award, which I also think is flawed. Samir Nasri, Luis Nani, Gareth Bale and Joe Hart were all on the shortlist for the award. Yes they are all young players, but they are also seasoned professionals who have sackfuls of international caps between them. That they have had good seasons is not a surprise, as they are all established Premier League players. In the past, Cesc Fabregas has been short listed whilst captain of Arsenal and a regular in the all conquering Spanish squad. 

Personally, I believe this award should be renamed the “breakthrough” award; recognising the player that has come from relative obscurity to become a star of great promise. Jack Wilshere of Arsenal, Seamus Coleman of Everton and Javier Hernandez of Manchester United - all of whom were short listed in any case - would remain eligible whilst others such as Marc Albrighton of Aston Villa and Martin Kelly of Liverpool would also be considered. It would celebrate progress, not simply youth.

For what it’s worth, I think Gareth Bale and Jack Wilshere have had tremendous seasons so far, and both players look likely to grace the Premier League for many years to come - unless the likes of Real Madrid come knocking of course. Whilst the system may not be perfect, it has at least delivered two winners that play football in the right way, and it will be fascinating to see their development over the coming years. Just how far can they go?