PFA Players' Player of the Year: Bruno Fernandes eyes hat-trick as Arsenal stars make shortlist

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·5 June 2026

PFA Players' Player of the Year: Bruno Fernandes eyes hat-trick as Arsenal stars make shortlist

Fernandes has already picked up the Premier League Player of the Season and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year awards

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes can make it a hat-trick of awards after being shortlisted for the PFA Players’ Player of the Year.

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Fernandes broke the Premier League assist record this season, previously held jointly by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne, as he helped Man United recover from a disappointing first half of the campaign to finish third under Michael Carrick.

As such he has won the Premier League Player of the Season and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year awards.

Fernandes will now look to claim the PFA Players’ Player of the Year for first time and become the first Man Utd player to win the award since Wayne Rooney in 2010.

Bruno Fernandes is the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year

PA

Five other players have been nominated by their peers, and unsurprisingly three Arsenal players have been shortlisted after their Premier League title-winning campaign.

David Raya, Gabriel and Declan Rice join Fernandes in the running for the prize having played a key role in ending the Gunners’ 22-year wait to be crowned champions of England.

Raya started all but one game en route to claiming a third successive Premier League Golden Glove award, while Gabriel was part of the meanest defence across the entire division, conceding 27 goals.

Rice weighed in with four goals and seven assists in 36 Premier League appearances, missing one game through injury and then being rested for the final game of the season against Crystal Palace with the title already wrapped up.

Nominated: Declan Rice, David Raya and Gabriel

Getty

Manchester City pair Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki complete the list, with the former winning the Golden Boot award after netting 27 goals - five more than Brentford’s Igor Thiago.

Mohamed Salah was named Players’ Players of the Year last year, but no Liverpool players have made the cut this time.

The winner of the award will be announced at the 53rd annual PFA Awards Ceremony in Manchester on Tuesday, August 25.