With consistency, it is getting recognised that the SoccerVista section of Betting Tips Africa contributes significantly to the value bettors derive from their football knowledge.
But, this is not only applicable to football; it also assists in improving one’s ability to make better betting judgements, which in turn directly translates into more earnings.
This week’s edition of Soccer Vista will be focused on two English Premier League superstars who have never won the Player of the Month award despite their undeniable quality and consistency.
However, as it is our model, we will be taking a brief overview of what the EPL Player of the Month award is and some history of how it came into existence.
What Is The Premier League Player Of The Month Award?
The Premier League Player of the Month award is given out every month by the FA (Football Association) during the Premier League season to the player who gets deemed to have been the best performer in the league during that particular month.
Between 1994 and 2001, the award was known as the “Carling Premiership Player of the Month”. It was renamed as the “Barclaycard Premiership Player of the Month” from 2001 to 2004 and also took the name “Barclays Player of the Month” from 2004 to 2016. Currently, it gets recognised as the “EA Sports Player of the Month Award“.
The winner of the highly reputable Player of the Month award gets decided by a mix of a vote cast by the general public online (the vote accounts for 10% of the total score), a vote cast by a panel of experts, and another vote cast by the captain of each Premier League team.
Brief History Of The Premier League Player Of The Month Award
In spite of great achievements in European competition during the 1970s and early 1980s, English football hit rock bottom during the late 1980s.
After the tragedy that took place at Heysel Stadium in 1985, English clubs got barred from participating in European competitions for a period of five years.
The disaster occurred when a wall collapsed, trapping largely Juventus fans who were trying to escape a breach caused by Liverpool fans.
As a result of the ban and other problems, stadiums were falling into disrepair, and fans had to make do with inadequate facilities. Then a decision was made;
In 1992, the glamorous English Premier League of nowadays got formed. This happened after the members of the old “First Division” withdrew from their positions within the Football League.
Together, these clubs established a brand new league that is commercially independent and arranged its own deals with broadcasters and sponsors.
With its legal name being “The Football Association Premier League Limited”, they added two new awards “, Manager of the Month, “and “Manager of the Season,” for the 1993–94 season.
The Player of the Month award was first given out by the Premier League during the 1994 – 1995 season. This award gets given out in conjunction with the Manager of the Month award.
German legendary striker Jurgen Klinsmann, who played for North London giants Tottenham Hotspur, was given the very first “Player of the Month award”. His scintillating performances during the month of August 1994 earned him the award.
Two EPL Superstars who have never won the award in their careers
N’golo Kante
The French midfielder is one of the current legends of the game. Kante gets lauded for his tireless effort on the pitch as well as his defensive prowess, which are two of the primary reasons why so many people believe he is one of the best central midfielders in the world.
Kante made a somewhat quiet move to Leicester City for a transfer fee that was equal to £5.6 million in the year 2015. Little did the football world know that the often shy midfielder was at the start of a legendary journey which started with the Foxes.
Kante was an indispensable member of the Leicester City squad that shocked the world by ending up winning the Premier League with complete surprise in 2016. A team that comprised the likes of Riyad Mahrez, Jamie Vardy, Wes Morgan, and Shinji Okazaki sat at the top of the Premier League standings for many weeks prior to lifting the title.
The following year, Kante joined London giants Chelsea for a transfer fee of £32 million. Surprisingly, he repeated the previous season’s trick and won the league again, making him the first outfield player to win consecutive English league titles with different clubs.
This feat put him alongside the legendary Eric Cantona, who achieved the record in 1992 and 1993.
The French midfielder went on to win many trophies with Chelsea, which include the UEFA Europa League, the UEFA Champions League, the FA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup.
On the national level, Kante was part of the French special team, which included the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Paul Pogba, and so on, which powered on to win the World Cup in 2018.
He also won many individual accolades as he has been awarded the Premier League Player of the Season, the FWA Footballer of the Year, the UEFA Men’s Midfielder of the Year, the PFA Players’ Player of the Year, and the Trophées UNFP for Best French Player Abroad twice.
However, despite winning all these awards, N’golo Kante has surprisingly never won the Player of the Month award.
Currently, injuries have taken a great toll on the ball-winning midfielder, but he recently made his comeback after a long layoff. There is still a chance for him to win this award that is missing from his catalogue.
Bettors can stake on him or any other player of their choice to win the EPL Player of the Month award with Bookies like 1xBet, Betway and many more that offer such unique markets to their patrons.
Kevin De Bruyne
The Belgian midfielder has shown an undisputed quality since his return to the Premier League. De Bruyne began his professional career with Belgian side Genk, where he was a regular player throughout the team’s 2010 – 2011 Belgian Pro League championship run.
After signing with London giants Chelsea in 2012, he saw a severely limited playing time at the club and got eventually loaned out to the German side Werder Bremen.
In 2014, he made an £18 million transfer to Wolfsburg, where he quickly became known as one of the most talented players in the Bundesliga and played a pivotal role in the club’s victory in the DFB-Pokal for the 2014–15 season.
He then made his move back to England with Manchester City for a staggering fee of £54 million. Kevin de Bruyne has been incredible for the Cityzens ever since he was signed from Wolfsburg by Manuel Pellegrini, who was the manager of the club at the time.
Then Spanish manager Pep Guardiola was signed by the club, and under the tactician, De Bruyne has established himself as one of the best midfielders in the history of the Premier League.
As a matter of fact, many football fans and experts have compared him to renowned Premier League legendary midfielders such as Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard, and Steven Gerrard due to his performances.
Since then, the Belgian has led the team to victory in the FA Cup, four Premier League crowns, and five League Cups.
In the 2017–18 campaign, he played a vital part in Manchester City setting a new Premier League record by being the only team to ever accumulate 100 points in a single season. This feat earned them the title “the Centurions“.
On a personal note, he has got awarded the Premier League Playmaker of the Season award twice, the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award twice, and Manchester City’s Player of the Year award four times.
Furthermore, he won the UEFA Champions League Midfielder of the Season award once, the Belgian Sportsman of the Year award once, the Bundesliga Player of the Year award once, the Footballer of the Year (Germany) award once, and the IFFHS World’s Best Playmaker award twice.
However, despite winning all the aforementioned accolades and becoming known in every nook and cranny of football, the Belgian has surprisingly never won a single Premier League Player of the Month award.
He still has a chance to win the coveted award as he is still at the peak of his powers. Gamers can make money on reputable Bookies hosted on Betting Tips Africa by staking on players to win the EPL Player of the Month award.
