Bruno Fernandes Wins PFA Player of Year; Breaks Assist Record with 21
Key Points
- Bruno Fernandes set a new Premier League record with 21 assists in the 2025-26 season, surpassing Kevin de Bruyne and Thierry Henry's previous mark of 20.
- Khadija Shaw won the PFA women's player of the year award for the second time in three seasons, scoring 21 goals in 22 WSL appearances.
- Fernandes is the first Manchester United player to win the PFA award since Wayne Rooney in 2010.
Both Fernandes and Shaw had previously been named Football Writers' Association player of the year for the 2025-26 campaign. Shaw is the first player to win three WSL golden boots, moving clear of previous two-time winners Vivienne Miedema and Sam Kerr. She is also the third individual to claim multiple PFA women's player of the year awards, joining Lucy Bronze and Fran Kirby, after completing the PFA and FWA double following the 2023-24 season.
In the young player categories, Manchester City defender Nico O'Reilly, 21, succeeded Morgan Rogers as men's young player of the year with 8 goal involvements across 34 league outings. O'Reilly contributed 5 goals and 9 clean sheets and was named player of the match when City defeated Arsenal in the League Cup final. Arsenal's Olivia Smith retained the women's young player of the year award, becoming only the second player after England international Lauren Hemp to win the honour multiple times. The Canada international, 22, scored 10 goals in all competitions after joining Arsenal for £1 million last summer from Liverpool.
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Fernandes faced competition from Arsenal trio Gabriel Magalhaes, David Raya, and Declan Rice alongside Manchester City attackers Rayan Cherki and Erling Haaland. Cherki finished as the second-most prolific provider in the Premier League with 12 assists. The convergence of individual awards on Manchester City and Manchester United players reflects the two clubs' dominance of the 2025-26 season, with City securing both the WSL title and FA Cup while United's trophy drought persisted despite securing third-place league finish.
Sources: BBC Sport and other international news outlets.
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