- Man Utd’s Bruno Fernandes nominated PFA award
- Arsenal and Man City stars in contention
- Where does Fernandes rank?
Bruno Fernandes has been nominated for the PFA Player of the Year award and the Manchester United skipper is up against five other top stars. The Portuguese playmaker enjoyed his best season to date.
The PFA award will be handed out on Tuesday, August 25th. If Fernandes were to win it, he’d become the first United player to do so since Wayne Rooney in 2010.
Fernandes is one of six Premier League players who are in contention to be rewarded for their excellent seasons. But where does Read Man Utd believe the 31-year-old ranks among his peers?
6: Rayan Cherki
The French midfielder has made a sensational start to life at Man City since arriving from Lyon last summer. He put in several eye-catching displays and ran Fernandes closest in the assist charts.
That said, Cherki wasn’t always a starter in Pep Guardiola’s team and doesn’t boast the consistency of others on the list. A fine debut campaign but not enough to be crowned PFA Player of the Year.
| Rayan Cherki | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Games | 32 |
| Goals | 4 |
| Assists | 12 |
| Goal Contributions | 16 |
| Minutes | 1,753 |
| Yellow Cards | 1 |
5: Erling Haaland
It’s become the norm for Haaland to put extraordinary goalscoring numbers and he inevitably won the Premier League Golden Boot. The Norweigan also showed more teamwork this term, putting City on his back following Kevin De Bruyne’s departure and during Rodri’s absence through injury.
Had City won the title, Haaland may well be the favourite to win the award. It’s worth noting he wasn’t at his best throughout the campaign, unlike the other four who rank higher.
| Erling Haaland | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Games | 35 |
| Goals | 27 |
| Assists | 8 |
| Goal Contributions | 35 |
| Minutes | 2,958 |
| Yellow Cards | 2 |
4: David Raya
The Spanish goalkeeper’s contributions during Arsenal’s Premier League title-winning campaign were crucial. He had a similar impact of that of the likes of Edwin van der Sar and Peter Schmeichel during United’s dominance in the English top-flight.
Raya is unfortunate not to be among the three frontrunners for the award. But goalkeepers are very rarely handed individual honours despite their importance.
| David Raya | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 37 |
| Clean Sheets | 19 |
| Goals Conceded | 26 |
| Saves | 60 |
| Save % | 69.8% |
| Minutes | 3,330 |
3: Gabriel Magalhaes
There hasn’t been a better defender in the Premier League this season, and Gabriel’s influence extends beyond the defensive side of his game. The Brazilian scored decisive goals and helped the Gunners surge to the title.
Gabriel’s importance was telling when he started the year sidelined. Without him, the North Londoners started to stutter.
| Gabriel Magalhaes | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 33 |
| Goals | 4 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Clean Sheets | 15 |
| Minutes | 2,970 |
| Yellow Cards | 6 |
2: Declan Rice
The best performer for the champions was Rice, who was very rarely not at a world-class level. The English midfielder came to the fore on so many occasions and should be the one wearing the title-winners’ captain’s armband.
Arsenal fans will be outraged to see Rice miss out on the PFA award. But they should realise that despite being the best player in his team, he wasn’t the best player in the Premier League.
| Declan Rice | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 36 |
| Goals | 7 |
| Assists | 9 |
| Goal Contributions | 16 |
| Minutes | 3,128 |
| Chances Created | 62 |
1: Bruno Fernandes
If the United captain doesn’t win the award, then there’s something truly wrong with English football. It’s easy to point out that he broke the all-time assist record for a single campaign.
Fernandes produced magic every time he was on the pitch and even excelled playing deeper in Ruben Amorim’s system. There’s no telling how many assists he’d have racked up had Michael Carrick been in charge since the start of the season.
| Bruno Fernandes | Premier League 2025/26 |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 38 |
| Goals | 12 |
| Assists | 15 |
| Goal Contributions | 27 |
| Minutes | 3,420 |
| Chances Created | 95 |
