A Football Life Awards 2019
We’ve got 6 awards to hand out to some of the best and worst footballers of 2019. Read on to see who scooped our prizes!
1- Best Retired Footballer 2019
There can be no doubt about this one.
Big man, Peter Crouch, has perfectly transitioned from Stoke City and Burnley substitute to an award-winning podcast, television pundit, best-selling author, and chat show host in the blink of an eye.
Whoever manages Crouch’s workload behind the scenes is doing a top job of recycling his stories from his lifetime as a footballer.
By revealing his funniest anecdotes across multiple forms of media and being a normal lad, Peter’s stories and sense of humour have made him an instant hit on the television and in people’s ears.
2- Biggest Opportunity Wasted 2019
There is no doubt about Gabriel Jesus’ ability as a footballer.
He appears to have the desired combination of Brazilian flair, the ability to beat a man, and always arrives in the box at the right time.
With Sergio Aguero missing such a large chunk of 2019 at various stages, this year was the perfect opportunity for Gabriel Jesus to step up and announce himself as the next big thing at the Etihad Stadium.
While he can celebrate scoring 50 goals for Manchester City in total, a home goal is rarer than hen's teeth and City have had to rely on the midfield for goals — Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling obliging perfectly.
As Sergio Aguero’s career appears to be heading into the twilight phase, Jesus needs to deliver in the back end of this season to guarantee he is not replaced in the Summer 2020 transfer window.
3- Biggest External Influence 2019
Aside from carrying Manchester City’s attacking options throughout 2019, Raheem Sterling has had a busy year off the pitch.
As the recipient of racist abuse from several sets of supporters across 2019, Sterling took to social media to do something about it.
Frustrated at the authorities attempts at solving the seemingly growing problem, he utilised his powerful Twitter following of 2m+ to make a real statement.
Sterling responded to the alleged racist abuse he received throughout England’s 5–1 Euro 2020 qualifying victory in Montenegro, tweeting a picture of his defiant celebration in front of home supporters with the message: “Best way to silence the haters (and yeah I mean racists).”
Recognizing that racism works in many evil forms, he was also quick to defend teammate Bernando Silva. Silva was accused of, and punished for, tweeting racist remarks against fellow City player Benjamin Mendy.
Sterling pointed out that not every comment is racist — and that sometimes people do just look like other people.
His work with various communities and campaigns has been recognized by many media outlets like being nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year and being named on a list of Britain’s Most Influential Black Footballers, and even Britain’s Most Influential Black People.
4- Worst Football Haircut 2019
Since Marouane Fellaini and Mario Balotelli have vacated the Premier League, we’ve not been graced with such outlandish hair as previous years. However, there were still a few contenders for this year’s prize.
Arsenal signing David Luiz made for an interesting match up with Matteo Guendouzi in the Sideshow Bob department.
The top knot seems to have thankfully gone away — although nobody has told Gareth Bale.
There’s been a lot of blonde highlights (when isn’t there?) — and some questionable carvings into random haircuts.
And that’s just Paul Pogba.
Napoli’s Marek Hamsik consistently delivers this mohawk…
But the winner of this year’s Worst Football Haircut must go to…
Some, the French, would argue that Bellerin’s locks reflect that of an iconic David Ginola or other famous French footballing…err..models?
However, North London is not the place to pull of this look.
Oh, well. At least he didn’t go for cornrows.
5- Best Left Foot of the Year 2019
This quickly became an extremely tough award to find an appropriate winner.
Over recent years, left footers have had stand out years. Just think back to Gareth Bale taking the world by storm, Leighton Baines scoring a free kick every week, and Ryan Giggs dominating for an entire decade.
Looking further afield from the Premier League, it’s always hard to ignore Lionel Messi. However, the left peg of Kai Havertz has produced consistent goals and link up play all throughout 2019.
Andy Robertson has been nothing short of phenomenal for Liverpool at left back, beating players and whipping balls in with his left foot.
Bernardo Silva has been possibly the most consistent player in the Premier League this year — and is just as good with his right.
The wand of David Silva is also nothing short of majestic.
However, the hardest left foot to ignore this year has been that of Lucas Digne.
Be it corner, free kick, or cross from a counter attack, Digne’s quickly recreated the magic that Everton fans associated with Leighton Baines in his prime.
We’ll let his feet (or foot) do the talking…
6- A Football Life Footballer of the Year 2019
Yes, Messi has had another fantastic year and so has Ronaldo, and Virgil Van Dyk was exceptional.
But, rather than give our most prestigious award one of the most obvious, we’ve gone for a kid that burst onto the scene, had an immediate impact, and has extremely quickly become the hottest property in world football.
Trent Alexander-Arnold came under fire for his defensive frailty at the start of the 2019/2020 season. However, the entire Liverpool defence has come into question for the same reason.
It’s been many years since defending has been the number one requirement for a full back or a wing back.
Pace, delivery, and spatial awareness are now much higher up on the priority list for managers. The game has simply evolved.
And nobody is better at fulfilling these new criteria than Alexander-Arnold.
Add to this his dead ball speciality and there’s not much more you can demand from the young right back.
He scores goals from defence, is an absolute assist-merchant, and is only 21.
The thought that Alexander-Arnold could get better should strike fear in the eyes, hearts, and souls of every Premier League and Champions League team for years to come.
Congrats on the award, Trent Alexander-Arnold!
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