The Championship season proper has now drawn to a close. Wolves were by far the best team in the league, and they cruised to the title, whilst Cardiff City ensured that they’ll be joining them in the Premier League, after securing second place over Fulham on the final day.
Fulham, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough and Derby made the playoffs, whilst Sunderland, Burton and Barnsley will be playing in League One next season. But today, we’re talking about players rather than teams, and who has been the most impressive this season.
Here are our top 7 Championship Players of the Season:
7. Junior Hoilett – Cardiff City
We came close to having no Cardiff City players in this seven, and in a way, that sums up the Championship runners-up this season. Their side is very much one in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and although their football isn’t always the prettiest, Neil Warnock’s men make an unexpected return to the Premier League. Centre-backs Sean Morrison and Sol Bamba have been excellent, Gunnarsson has played a crucial role in the middle of the park, whilst Zohore and Mendez-Laing have both contributed going forward. The Bluebirds outstanding player though, in our opinion, has been Junior Hoilett. The Canadian international has made 11 assists and has scored 9 goals in the Championship this season, bringing a touch of flair and creativity to a well-drilled Warnock side.
6. Tom Cairney – Fulham
Tom Cairney of Fulham celebrates scoring his sides second goal during the Sky Bet Championship match between Norwich City and Fulham at Carrow Road on March 30, 2018 in Norwich, England.
One of the three Championship Player of the Year contenders chosen by the EFL, Tom Cairney has been among the best central midfielders in the Championship for half a decade now. Last summer, Fulham reportedly rebuffed a bid of £20 million for the Scottish international, and he has helped them finish in the play-offs once again this term. As well as having 5 goals and 5 assists, the Cottagers skipper also has the highest pass completion ratio in the division, with over 91% of his passes reaching their target.
5. Diogo Jota – Wolves
Having watched Wolves way back in August, I said they were the best team I’d seen in the Championship so far. Fast forward nine months to the end of the season, no-one came anywhere near to them, and they deservedly romped to the title. Conor Coady in his new role of sweeper and Willy Boly at the back deserve to be mentioned, but fifth place in this seven goes to Diogo Jota. A Portuguese youth international who can operate as either an attacking midfielder or as a left winger, his game is characterised by pace and technique. He was Wolves’ top scorer this season with 17 goals, and having initially joined the club on-loan, that move will become permanent in the summer for a fee of £13 million.
4. Ryan Sessegnon – Fulham
Ryan Sessegnon of Fulham during the Sky Bet Championship match between Fulham and Sunderland at Craven Cottage on April 27, 2018 in London, England.
The second Fulham player in this seven, Ryan Sessegnon was recently named by the EFL as the Championship Player of the Season. We don’t quite agree with that, although we’d happily give Sessegnon the title of most impressive season. Remarkably still only 17 years old, he led Fulham’s scoring charts with 15 goals, as they came close to winning automatic promotion. A quick, tricky and composed left winger who is surely a future England international, you get the impression that Fulham need to win the play-offs to keep him at the club this summer.
3. James Chester – Aston Villa
As is so often the case, the work of defenders can go a little unnoticed, however, there’s a reason why James Chester was named as Aston Villa fans player of the season. Despite standing at under 6 foot tall, Chester is a formidable centre-back. He is intelligent, composed and an expert when it comes to cleanly dispossessing opponents. I could sit here and wax lyrical about him for days, and it’s an injustice that at 29, the Welsh international isn’t playing top flight football. Chester has played at that level before, and excelled there, and if Villa don’t go up via the play-offs, I wouldn’t blame him for touting himself about a little.
2. James Maddison – Norwich City
James Maddison of England U21 in action during the U21 European Championship Qualifier match between England U21 and Ukraine U21 at Bramell Lane on March 27, 2018 in Sheffield, England.
A somewhat surprising inclusion for some I’m sure, primarily because Norwich City have been banished to the wilderness of mid table obscurity for a long time now, but that doesn’t mean we should overlook the performances and talents of James Maddison. A talented young attacking midfielder, Maddison scored a very impressive 14 goals and made 8 assists over the course of the season. A difficult player to contain when he’s on form, Maddison has the potential to be a top class talent, but he would benefit from cutting some of the antics out of his game.
1. Ruben Neves – Wolves
There was never any doubt over who was going to top this seven. Even people who pay little to no attention to the Championship will have seen fantastic highlights reel-type footage of Ruben Neves smashing balls into the back of the net from 40 yards out. He has scored six goal-of-the-season contenders this season, but in truth, that is just one tiny part of his overall game. Capable of playing in holding or central midfield, Neves has an exceptional range of passing and an understanding of the game that is well-beyond his limited years.
Of course, he did cost Wolves almost £16 million, and for that kind of money you’d expect a stand-out player in the Championship. But if he has another good season in the Premier League next term, you could double or even treble that evaluation no problem. For us at least, there’s no doubt that Neves has been the outstanding player in England’s second tier this season.
That’s it for our top seven, but there are a number of honourable mentions, such as Adama Traore, Matej Vydra and Conor Coady.
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