Declan Rice could now do something no Arsenal player has managed since Robin van Persie
The PFA Players’ Player of the Year award is announced tonight in Manchester.
Declan Rice is among the six nominees for the prestigious prize, which is voted for by fellow professionals rather than journalists.
The last Arsenal player to win it was Robin van Persie in 2012 — fourteen years ago. Before that, you have to go back to Thierry Henry in 2004.
Rice faces stiff competition though, and is currently a slight outsider. Bruno Fernandes is the favourite having already won the Premier League Player of the Season and the Football Writers’ Association award.
The Manchester United midfielder recorded 21 Premier League assists last season, breaking the record previously held jointly by Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.
Arsenal teammates Gabriel and David Raya are also nominated, while Manchester City duo Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki make up the rest of the contenders.
Why Declan Rice should win the PFA Player of the Year
Fernandes was extraordinary last season. Nobody is questioning that.
But there is a fundamental difference between what he did and what Rice managed, and it should be something that fellow footballers, who vote for this award, will understand better than anyone.
Fernandes played for a Manchester United side competing in the Premier League and… well, that’s it. His creative output was sensational but he was coming to play one game a week, fresh, in games with far fewer stakes.
Rice was the best player for the Premier League champions, and was the engine of a side who competed on all four fronts — a team that played 63 out of a possible 65 games.
Week in, week out, sometimes twice or three times a week, in what felt like a cup final every game.
He scored five goals and registered eleven assists across all competitions, and was a key part of the best defensive side in Europe.
And his performance level never really dropped. He was managed carefully at the World Cup to protect a neural issue, but still reached the semi-finals, playing all but one of England’s games.
Fernandes, meanwhile, blanked as Portugal exited at the Round of 16 stage.
Assist numbers are impressive, but was there the same level of praise given to Mesut Ozil, who yielded an incredible 16 assists by January? No. He wasn’t even included in the PFA Team of the Year that season.
Speaking of which, the 2025-26 PFA Team of the Year is also announced tonight, with Arsenal expected to dominate.
Raya, Gabriel and William Saliba are all expected to make it — Saliba will become the only player named in the last four consecutive PFA Teams of the Year. Jurrien Timber is another strong candidate.
It could be a very good night for Arsenal. And if Rice wins, it would be very well deserved.
