PREMIER LEAGUE MANAGER OF THE SEASON SHORTLIST AS NEW BOSS IN FIRST SEASON JOINS BIG NAMES

Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta are both vying for the Premier League Manager of the Season award with Bournemouth's Andoni Iraola also among the five nominees.

The two title protagonists were certainties to be included on the shortlist having led Manchester City and Arsenal impressively, with both teams still hoping to be named champions in a matter of weeks. Liverpool may have tailed off in recent weeks but Jurgen Klopp is still in with a shout.

The German, who has won the award previously in 2020 and 2022, has announced he will leave Anfield in the summer and landed the Carabao Cup several months ago. Liverpool had been in a three-way fight for the title, but recent results have seen them lose touch.

Aston Villa are close to landing a top four finish - something they haven't done since 1996. That is largely down to the impressive work of Unai Emery, who masterminded a club-record home winning run that saw them down the likes of Arsenal and City this season

Iraola meanwhile took over the Cherries in the summer and was something of an unknown quantity. He took ten games to record his first win with Bournemouth sat in the bottom three, but since beating Burnley in late October the south coast outfit have won 50 percent of their games.

That included a stunning 3-0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford in December and the Cherries currently sit in the top half of the table with Iraola named the Premier League Manager of the Month for March.

Guardiola is the only man nominated not to have picked up a gong for the best manager in a month during the season. Meanwhile Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou, the man who won the opening three Manager of the Month awards, is overlooked.

The destination of the Premier League trophy could go a long way to deciding who wins the award. City, provided they win their games in hand, current hold a narrow advantage. Two players from the Etihad and two from the Emirates have been nominated for the Player of the Season award.

Phil Foden and Erling Haaland fly the blue flag whilst Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice are the Arsenal players vying for the award. Chelsea's Cole Palmer, Virgil van Dijk, Ollie Watkins and Alexander Isak are also in the run-in. Foden, Haaland, Palmer and Isak have been nominated for the top award and the Best Young Player of the Year.

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2024-05-09T13:11:18Z dg43tfdfdgfd