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Patrick Vieira believes that there is only one possible winner of the PFA Player of the Year prize, but insists that it is not Liverpool’s 29 goal-striker Luis Suarez or Chelsea’s Eden Hazard. While the ex-Juventus star also claimed that the pair do not score enough goals in the big games.
Former Arsenal midfield general, and current Manchester City coach, Vieira told reporters that Yaya Toure should win the award for consistent performances across the season and for scoring 20 goals from central midfield, arguing that the Manchester City midfield has “absolutely everything.”
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“When you are voting for the best player, it shouldn’t just be about the number of goals you have scored or the number of assists you have made,” insisted Vieira.
“It should also be about whether you have done great things against the biggest teams in the biggest games. If you take that into account, then no one in the Premier League comes close to Yaya Toure.
“Yaya’s level of performance is very high in every game – and if you look at him in the biggest games his consistency is absolutely fantastic.”
Vieira continued by suggesting that Toure has a bigger impact in the big games than his rivals, saying that the likes of Luis Suarez and Eden Hazard “don’t even get close” to Toure’s impact on the most important matches.
“People talk about Suarez and Hazard – and let me say that they are two players I really admire – but when it comes to scoring goals, making goals and performing at a high level in the most important matches, they don’t even get close to Yaya.
“Suarez, in particular, is a player I absolutely love to watch. He is one of the best. But I’m not sure he has scored enough goals against the really big teams in the really big games.
“And it’s exactly the same with Hazard.
“We are talking about two terrific players for Liverpool and Chelsea. But Yaya Toure has scored more than 20 goals from central midfield – and as an all-round footballer he has absolutely everything. No-one has come close to him this season.”
Toure has a shot conversion rate of 41.5% this season.
