Best of 2025 Awards: Best Player, Best Manager, Team of the Year & More | OneFootball

With the end of the year hurtling into view, this is the perfect time to publish the Football Today Best of 2025 Awards.

These recognise the standout performers over the past 12 months across several categories. We even squeeze in a little humour along the way.

Without further ado, let’s kick things off with our best player of the year. And yes, for those of you familiar with this biased narrative, it isn’t Declan Rice.

Best Player

We’re fully aware of the obvious candidates, so we won’t bore you by naming them. Our best player of the year is Scott McTominay.

The former Manchester United star helped Napoli win Serie A and Scotland qualify for the World Cup this year.

The 29-year-old isn’t the most skilful player on the planet by any stretch of the imagination. But his impact in 2025? Second to none.

Best Manager

We’ll ignore Luis Enrique’s claims in this category, despite Paris Saint-Germain finally breaking their duck in the Champions League.

Given the resources he has at his disposal, Oliver Glasner has done a truly remarkable job at Crystal Palace.

Winning the FA Cup, guiding Palace into Europe and mounting an unlikely bid for a top four finish in the Premier League? That’ll do for us.

Best Team

It would be churlish not to recognise PSG’s achievements in 2025, especially in UEFA’s top club competition.

Enrique’s side produced several stellar performances on their way to the final, most notably when they outclassed Arsenal in the last-four.

Their brutal demolition job on Inter Milan in the final was a lesson in how to win with style in the Champions League.

Best International Team

Argentina and Spain both have strong claims to be called the best international team of the year, but the reigning world champions hold a narrow edge.

Both teams won eight and drew one of their ten outings in 2025, but Spain’s defeat by Portugal in the Nations League final tips the scales in Argentina’s favour.

The two nations are strong contenders to win the World Cup next summer. It would be no surprise if they meet in the final on July 19.

Best Goal

Santiago Montiel’s stunning goal for Argentinian outfit Independiente against Independiente Rivadavia in May was the best goal of the year.

As the WWE likes to tell us, don’t try this at home!

Team of the Year

Another year without Liverpool players? Yes. None of them would be on the bench if we were choosing more than a starting XI.

The inclusion of five PSG players is self-explanatory following their success in last season’s Champions League.

Guehi deserves his place in defence after helping Palace break their silverware duck, while Pedri cannot be omitted from midfield.

McTominay is included for the reasons mentioned earlier, while none of the free-scoring front three can be left out. And yes, the frontline is unbalanced, before anyone shouts out.

Best Moment

There have been plenty of standout moments this season, but they pale into the background against the best of the bunch.

Mohamed Salah’s childish tantrum at Liverpool has been truly epic to watch.

The 33-year-old threw his toys out of the pram after Reds manager Arne Slot decided his underperforming team needed a shake-up.

Salah felt he had been made a scapegoat for Liverpool’s poor form this season, before babbling incessantly about his past achievements at the club.

The Egyptian conveniently overlooked the fact that Liverpool were bombing with him in the team, but improved after he was dropped.

Salah has previously demonstrated petulant tendencies, most notably when he tried to pressure the club into offering him a new contract.

Pointing out how many goals he has previously scored for the club bore all the hallmarks of someone who believes he is bigger than the team.

It is worth noting that Salah’s goalscoring exploits haven’t exactly resulted in Liverpool replicating their glory years of the 1970s and 1980s.

Winning two Premier League titles, one Champions League, one FA Cup and one League Cup in eight years is not bad, but not great by any stretch of the imagination.

Salah and his fanboys may believe he is a Liverpool legend. Kenny Dalglish, Alan Hansen, Graeme Souness and many more from that era would beg to differ.