According to The Sun, after the PFA (Professional Footballers’ Association) announced last season’s Team of the Year, Manchester United has set an awkward record. For the first time in the Premier League era, they have had no players selected for the PFA Team of the Year for two consecutive seasons.
Despite a decline in strength since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, Manchester United’s players still frequently made it into the Team of the Year. Of course, there were seasons when no Manchester United player was selected, but never before had there been a situation where no one was chosen for two consecutive seasons.
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Manchester United in 2021 and became the last player to be included in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year for the 2021/22 season. In the 2020/21 season, Bruno Fernandes and Luke Shaw also received this honor.
Paul Pogba was selected for the best team in 2019, despite Manchester United finishing only sixth in the Premier League that year. Goalkeeper David de Gea was a constant presence for Manchester United, being selected for the Team of the Year from 2015 to 2018, four consecutive years.
However, in the 2022/23 season, no Manchester United player was selected for the PFA Team of the Year. This situation continued into the 2023/24 season, with Manchester United again having “no harvest.”
In the PFA Team of the Year for the 2023/24 season, five Arsenal players were selected (David Raya, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães, Declan Rice, and Ødegaard), along with four Manchester City stars (Kyle Walker, Rodri, Foden, and Haaland).
Additionally, Liverpool’s central defender Virgil van Dijk and Aston Villa’s forward Watkins were also included in the squad.
The last time Manchester United had no players selected for the Team of the Year for two consecutive seasons was in the 1986/87 and 1987/88 seasons. Between 1979 and 1980, this situation occurred three times consecutively, when the league was dominated by Liverpool and Arsenal.
