Arsenal youngster Alex Iwobi has revealed he voted for Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante for the PFA Player of the Year award.
Kante beat Iwobi’s team-mate Alexis Sanchez, his fellow Chelsea player Eden Hazard and strikers Romelu Lukaku, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Harry Kane to the prize on Sunday after an exceptional season at Stamford Bridge.
A title-winner with Leicester last season Kante looks on course to secure another Premier League winners’ medal under Antonio Conte this season, with the Chelsea manager describing his summer signing as a “silent leader” in the Stamford Bridge dressing room.
Such has been the French international’s impact at his new club that even cross-London rivals acknowledge that he has been the best player in the country this season.
In Pictures | PFA Premier League Team of the Year 2017
“He’s someone that works for the team and even though he’s a Chelsea player, you have to respect what he does,” Iwobi told Arsenal Player.
“He works for the team and just runs non-stop - he’s got something every player would like to have. Every player would like to have him in their team.
“The engine, the energy he brings, the enthusiasm - he is my player of the season.”
Hazard finished second in the voting behind his Chelsea team-mate, with Manchester United forward Ibrahimovic voted in third place by his peers.
