Manchester City defender Ruben Dias crowned Premier League player of the year in his debut season in top-flight English football.
Pep Guardiola bought the Portuguese defender last autumn from SL Benfica. Following this move, the Citizens straightway became strong defensively and in the run for the Premier League title, they have conceded just 26 goals since Dias’ debut.
The 24-years-old defender made 32 appearances in the league. And under the Portuguese International’s supervision, Manchester City achieved 15 clean sheets.
With Ruben Dias, fellow teammate Kevin De Bruyne was also on the final list for the player of the year award. Apart from these two Harry Kane, Bruno Fernandes, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount and Tomas Soucek were the nominations.
Should Harry Kane have won the award instead of Ruben Dias?
Harry Kane has had a terrific season despite Tottenham Hotspur’s struggles. The forward scored 23 goals and 14 assists in 35 appearances. This figure shows how great the 28-year-old striker was this season.
In any other season, Kane might be the player of the season without any argument. However, the impact Ruben Dias had in Manchester City’s pursuit of the fifth Premier League title is beyond any statistical measurement.
The defender led from the back, and with Ruben Dias, John Stone has found his confidence back. The English defender had a rejuvenating season for Guardiola’s side.
If the Citizens managed to win the Champions League title that would have been the cherry on top for Manchester City. In that case, Ruben Dias would have been a contender to win the Ballon d’Or. However, it was not the case and in an excellent 2020-2021 campaign the Champions League final result will give anguish to the City fans.
Regardless of that, the Citizens will be happy with their squad and they will be looking forward to winning back to back league titles next season. And conquer the Champions League for the first time in their history.
