Premier League Team of the Year 2011

It's one thing to come up with a team of the season, but another thing entirely to come up with a team of the year. It has to take into account accumulated statistics, consistency over two separate halves of two separate seasons, and general overall performances for whichever clubs are fortunate to possess the players who make the difference. Add in a summer transfer and a new lavish contract and we have two clubs contributing to a player's inclusion in this prestigious blog. So, here it is.

Premier League Team of the Year (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper – Brad Friedel (Aston Villa and Tottenham)

In terms of consistency in 2011, there is no goalkeeper equal to the big American in the Premier League. He has not missed a league game since the 2004/5 season, and is subsequently the current record holder for the most consecutive appearances in the top-flight. Oh, and he is 40 years old. To have moved clubs in the close season and still managed to have kept his rightful position as Spurs’ number 1 (usurping Heurelho Gomes in the process) says it all about his temperament, approach to the game in the autumn of his career, and of course his ability as a shot-stopper.

RB – Micah Richards (Manchester City)

Roberto Mancini must have had good reason to offer Micah Richards a new five-year contract in the summer of 2011. An FA Cup winner’s medal aside, stellar performances, particularly in the latter part of the last campaign helped them keep a league-high 18 clean sheets and propel them to third. Again a consistent performer, Richards has been constantly on City’s team sheet this campaign while they challenge for the title, and his impressive performances have merited a regular place in a competitive line-up. His technical traits have all improved, while his beast-like strength and speed on the ball has made him a threat in attack as well as a top defender.

CB – Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United)

“He comes from Serbia, he’ll f**kin’ murder ya”, goes the song from the Stretford End. Very fitting. United’s team captain will challenge for every aerial ball and will most likely win. He makes block after block, times his tackles to perfection, and has been 2011’s best central defender in the league. Soon after scoring in the win against Chelsea which all but wrapped up United’s 19^th title, Vidic was named the Barclays Player of the Season. This season his return to the side after injury coincided with a run of clean sheets after United’s earlier uncertain form. News that he will miss the rest of the season is a huge blow for the club.

CB – Phil Jones (Blackburn and Manchester United)

It is hard to believe that this boy is not yet 20. The praise he has received from peers has been overwhelming. Now being talked of as a new Keane or Duncan Edwards, despite being a natural centre-back, Phil Jones has had a fantastic breakthrough year – not allowing the media hype to affect his performances for club, and now country. He finished his time at Blackburn in stellar fashion – notably keeping a clean sheet at Arsenal – prompting Sir Alex Ferguson to pay £16m for him in the summer. At United he has simply flourished, playing more games than any of his team-mates this season.

LB – Leighton Baines (Everton)

Being left out of the England squad to South Africa may have, on some level, helped Leighton Baines. Since that disappointment, and especially this year, he has, by a distance, been Everton’s best player. Baines is an ever-present on David Moyes’s team sheet, and for good reason. He has been the league’s highest assisting defender in 2011, contributing quality crosses from the left, while also taking responsibility for most of The Toffees’ penalties and free kicks. He possesses a wonderful left foot, and has often left Goodison Park applauding the left-back’s style and composure on the ball.

DM – Scott Parker (West Ham and Tottenham)

It is perhaps a little bittersweet that Scott Parker is playing the best football of his career after he has turned 30. This year has undoubtedly been his most productive year, despite undeservedly being relegated with West Ham. He earned the Football Writers’ Player of the Year due to his committed defensive midfield performances for the stricken Hammers. His subsequent transfer to Tottenham has given him the ability to showcase his passing and controlling of games in a team of real quality, forging in particular a wonderful partnership with Luka Modric in midfield. It is no coincidence that he remains unbeaten for Spurs when he has played for them.

CM/CAM – David Silva (Manchester City)

Since Manchester City became genuine title contenders, all the talk has been of this little Spaniard. Constantly referred to as the league’s best midfielder, he has it all: dazzling trickery, the ability to accelerate away from opposition players, fantastic determination, and a lethal finish – pretty much everything required to be a playmaker. He has chipped in with his fair share of goals, and has assisted with 9 already this current season. In Silva there is an air of a young boy just enjoying his football, while keeping his team flying high atop the Premier League as 2011 ends.

CM/CAM –Rafael van der Vaart (Tottenham)

There was a time in 2011 when Rafael van der Vaart carried Tottenham single-handedly through games to victory. The exceptionally talented Dutchman produced the goods and the goals, at times from nowhere, to ensure Spurs had something to shout about come May. He ended last season as their highest assist-maker and top scorer; the latter is a stat that is all the more remarkable considering he is not even a striker. This incredible form continued after the summer break, when van der Vaart equalled a Tottenham record by scoring in five consecutive league games.

ST – Demba Ba (West Ham and Newcastle)

Another player who has benefitted from performing well for a relegated team, Demba Ba has been a terrific addition to English football. He is a no-nonsense striker with a devastating eye for goal, and since joining West Ham in January has scored 18 goals in the league – 11 of them this campaign. Alan Pardew at Newcastle has given him the perfect tactical set-up with which to add to his tally, and he has repaid his manager’s faith. He has two hat-tricks already this season for the Magpies, while his goals and link-up play has contributed to their best start in years.

ST –Daniel Sturridge (Bolton, on loan, and Chelsea)

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has recently questioned why Daniel Sturridge was allowed to leave the club in 2009 under old management. It is clear now that he would gladly have him back. Being loaned out by Chelsea to Bolton in January 2011 proved crucial for the 22-year-old, and has resulted in a breakthrough year for the speedy forward. He was magnificent for the Trotters, and scored 8 goals in just 12 appearances. He has returned to Chelsea with confidence and as a genuine goal threat. A further 8 league goals since August has kept the misfiring Fernando Torres sat firmly on the bench, which says much about Sturridge’s current form.

ST – Robin van Persie (Arsenal)

There are not enough superlatives to describe this player in 2011. A round of applause from Thierry Henry after his stunning volley against Everton might just do his year justice, for van Persie is one goal from equalling Henry’s club record of 34 goals in a calendar year, and just three behind Alan Shearer’s all-time record in the same period. 33 goals in 32 league games is the kind of form Messi and Ronaldo are so used to, so it is not outrageous to say the Dutchman is, in terms of form, up with the greatest players in the world this year.

Losing at Chelsea Won't Result in a City Train-wreck

Last night's entertainment - El Cashico, if you will - at the Bridge revealed what most of us knew, or at least thought. Manchester City are not unbeatable. I even called it myself, feeling Chelsea would overturn the shock concession of a goal less than two minutes into the game and come away with the three points. Of course, gut feelings from fans count for very little unless they are somehow in André Villas-Boas's inner circle. For the first 20 minutes, City were dominant, and for periods were unplayable. Sergio Aguero and David Silva looked sharp, as they should be with the talent they both possess. Behind them, Yaya Toure and Gareth Barry were passing through Chelsea's midfield with relative ease. It has been that way throughout most of the season. Before last night, the same, or similar setups in City's formation had seen them drop just four points since the beginning of the campaign. For all we can say about their unbelievable spending power, it is still quite a feat to manage, especially considering the potentially volatile individual egos strutting around the dressing room at the Etihad Stadium. Roberto Mancini has kept City on a steady course, and has not allowed his players to become too arrogant about the fact that they are many people's favourites to grab the Premier League trophy from the steely Govan knight who resides across Manchester.

It is perhaps more of what Chelsea did after the first quarter of their rain-soaked clash with City that changed the game. They dropped much deeper and their defensive line was much less at risk from any runs in behind from the tricky duo of Silva and Aguero, or from the raw pace and power of Mr. Balotelli up front, which was seen 98 seconds after Mark Clattenburg blew to kick things off. Tasting defeat for the first time thanks to Frank Lampard's substitute heroics from penalty spot may not be a bad thing for Mancini's men. It has showed them that they are vulnerable at times, and they will no doubt strive to right wrongs and plug defensive gaps that are there. There is little that needs reassessing in tactical domestic terms (their brief European adventure aside) because of the quality of their players and the subsequent quality of their play going forward: 49 goals scored in the league says as much. They have suffered little through injury: a huge factor for any championship-challenging team, and perhaps most importantly the strength of their squad will go a long way to guiding them through the difficult winter period. Mancini, however, must improve his side's discipline if they are to keep up their push for silverware. Against weaker teams losing a man will not, and has proved not to be too detrimental to their results, considering City have usually been in winning positions for large periods of matches. Against the stronger teams, it is a different story, as Gael Clichy's dismissal showed last night. For the final half an hour, there was a sense of inevitability that the ten men would succumb to AVB's boys. Yet losing at Chelsea will not spark a derailment of City's title aspirations. They are too good for that. Starting against Arsenal next week, we will likely see improvement and a powerful message that they are not going to be dropping down the table anytime soon.