EPL 2012-13: Season review and best XI

Well the season’s almost done and everyone is eagerly waiting to see who gets the PFA Player of the year and PFA Young Player of the year awards. Gareth Bale looks like the unanimous choice for the Young Player of the year award while opinions are divided when it comes to the PFA player of the year. It would’ve been a tricky decision had Luis Suarez controlled his hunger for 10-15 more minutes but he decided to bite Ivanovic’s arm (Snickers may have just found the perfect brand ambassador). But the Uruguayan’s cannibalistic behaviour might have just turned it in the favour of Robin Van Persie. The former Arsenal man has also leapfrogged Luis Suarez in the bid to win the Golden Boot by scoring a hat-trick against Aston Villa and taking his tally for the season to 24 (Suarez has 23). With Suarez set to miss the rest of the season due to suspension, his dreams of winning the Golden Boot must have also been shattered.

Although the league is over for the city of Manchester, the season is into the climax for whole of London as the three big clubs of the capital are fighting for the two remaining Champions League spots. Spurs are hot on the heels of Chelsea and Arsenal, who are currently in the 3^rd and 4^th spot respectively. Everton are down but not out, and the Merseyside club has finally came out of the shadow of Liverpool, the current mid table club which could have been battling relegation had Luis Suarez not been there. West Bromwich Albion, Swansea and Southampton are the clubs who have impressed me the most this season. The Baggies have performed brilliantly under coach Steve Clarke and are in sight of their highest finish ever in the top flight. Swans have been instrumental under their manager Michael Laudrup, who has become one of the few players to complete the successful transition from a player to manager. He made some brilliant signings in the summer, namely Jonathan de Guzman, Pablo Hernandez and Michu, the last being arguably the signing of the season. Players like these made it possible for the club to win the Capital One Cup, which would have been a distant dream 10 years back when they were battling relegation in the third tier of English football.

Then there are teams like Fulham, Sunderland, Stoke and Newcastle who are just waiting for the dismal season to end. Two clubs that are definitely going down at the end of the season are Reading and Queens Park rangers. QPR, managed by Harry Redknapp, have given the perfect example of how not to spend money in football. Reading have their own defensive vows, having conceded the most number of goals in the league. Also fighting relegation are Wigan and Aston Villa. Villa is one of the only seven clubs to have never been relegated from the Premier League era, but that distinction is in some serious danger as they are competing with Wigan, who have successfully avoided relegation for 7 years now and are considered specialists in the last few games of the season (they also provided the lethal blow to Manchester United by defeating them at a crucial juncture in the title race last season).

Finally, I’ll be concluding the review by presenting the best EPL XI in my opinion:

GK: David de Gea – The 22-year-old goalkeeper was slammed initially for committing horrible errors but the Spaniard has taken the opportunity by the scruff of its neck, giving spectacular performances one after the other and keeping 6 consecutive clean sheets, in the process making Manchester United’s No. 1 position his own.

RB: Rafael da Silva – The pocket-sized Brazilian was criticized for being too aggressive and not being able to defend properly in the past seasons, but some swashbuckling performances have gone a long way in silencing his critics and filling the void at right back left by the departure of Gary Neville. He narrowly pips Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic in the race for this spot.

CB: Jan Vertonghen – The Belgian has been a season-defining signing from the Spurs’ boss, AVB. Although considered as a centre half, he can play in midfield too, courtesy his speed, which has also helped him in scoring important goals for the team.

CB: David Luiz – The Chelsea defender has played a critical role in the Blues’ defence in the absence of their captain John Terry. Manager Rafa Benitez has also utilized him efficiently in midfield and set plays.

LB: Leighton Baines – The Everton left back is possibly the best crosser of the ball in the Premier League right now and has contributed heavily to his club’s rise in the league table. He has the highest number of assists among defenders and is the joint highest scoring defender with Ivanovic and Vertonghen.

CM: Marouane Fellaini – The Belgian holding midfielder has risen above all expectations this season. He has been conspicuous while playing in the hole behind the striker for most of the season, scoring 11 goals for Everton and has therefore pipped Yaya Toure for this position, who has been a shadow of himself compared to last season.

RM: Juan Mata – The Spanish attacking midfielder has been quite a revelation in Chelsea’s disappointing season. He holds the record for most assists in the league this season, which doesn’t come as a surprise, because of his mesmerizing passing.

LM: Gareth Bale – A tough decision, not his inclusion in the XI (that was the easiest one) but allotting him a position to play. Yeah, he has seriously been that good. It’s just a matter of time before he joins a side competing for the Champions league.

CAM: Michu – Buying the attacking midfielder for just $2 million was nothing but a masterstroke by Michael Laudrup. Although he has suffered from a loss of form towards the end of the campaign, he still manages to make the XI due to his superb scoring abilities.

ST: Luis Suarez – The skills that this guy possesses are unmatched, be it the skills with the football or without it. With 23 goals in his kitty, he has single-handedly taken Liverpool to the sixth spot on the table. On his day, he can be lethal and that’s the reason he makes the XI.

ST: Robin Van Persie – The Dutch forward has effortlessly settled into the Manchester United team and helped them win the league this season. He was United’s go-to man this season as he rescued them from numerous losing positions and most probably will be the 3^rd footballer after Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo to win the PFA player of the Year award twice, and in consecutive seasons.

Bench:- Petr Cech, Phil Jones, Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero, Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick, Santi Cazorla