English Premier League: PFA Team of the Year announced

Nicolas Otamendi

This next one is probably the most hotly debated topic, other than Fernandinho’s omission. Nicolas Otamendi. He is another player whom I admired in his La Liga days with Valencia, but who has struggled at times to make the same impact on the Premier League level.

Now, on the surface, ‘Joe from Opta’ has made a good case for his inclusion. Anyone who’s a fan of Guardiola and his history knows that the weakness in all of his teams has been an inability to defend. Even in the golden days of Puyol and Pique, Barca would win games 4-3 more than 4-0.

If you have watched them properly, you’ll also know it’s not as challenging when teams aren’t pressing you high to pass a ball successfully five yards to an unmarked De Bruyne, Fernandinho or David Silva, or across the back line. It’s really not the best metric for measuring whether someone deserves a place in the team of the year.

I don’t think anyone would argue with his vast improvement this season or his ability on the ball. But as an out-and-out defender, Otamendi has been found wanting on more than a few occasions when tested. I think the reason he’s probably made it is because the fiercest rivalry comes from Claret horses in the form of Burnley’s James Tarkowski and Ben Mee.

I talked previously about how Gareth Southgate could do a lot worse than calling both of them up and using them as two-thirds of his three at the back along with Kyle Walker. There’s a lot of respect for what Man City have achieved this season, and the way they’ve done it. That might be reflected in Otamendi’s inclusion over the other contenders for centerback.