Final list for Footballer of the year award released as Leicester and Newcastle players included

A Leicester City player has been named to the Mirror’s fans’ footballer of the year shortlist for 2022. Here are the specifics, as provided by Foxes of Leicester.

James Maddison has been named alongside Beth Mead, winner of the Women’s European Championship, Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland, and Mohamed Salah. Salah has previously won the accolade twice, and he is up against the stiff competition to achieve a hat-trick of Fans’ Footballer of the Year honors.

More than 135 000 fans voted last year, with the Liverpool attacker receiving 61% of the vote to maintain his championship after winning the honor in 2020. Journalists selected top-tier men’s and women’s players, who were then narrowed down to a nine-player shortlist.

The full final list of nominations includes:

• Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
• Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle United)
• Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
• Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)
• James Maddison (Leicester City)
• Beth Mead (Arsenal)
• Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
• Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
• Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur)

• James Maddison of Leicester City

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  Maddison has pushed his way into England’s team and aboard the plane bound for Qatar. The dazzling midfielder made himself unmissable with seven goals and four assists in a Leicester City side that was suffering for form. This continued from the end of the 2021/22 season when he scored four goals and assisted on three others in Leicester’s final four Premier League games.

  Kevin De Bruyne

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  The Belgium midfielder won his fourth league title with Man City and was also named Premier League player of the season for the second time. He has managed three goals and nine assists in the Premier League so far, whilst also striking up an incredible partnership with Erling Haaland. His form also allowed him to secure third place in the Ballon d’Or.

  Beth Mead

  The Arsenal and Lionesses’ forward has had an impressive year, breaking Jimmy Greaves’ 61-year record of most goals scored in a season by an England player. Whilst also winning the golden boot and player of the tournament as England secured Euros victory. Mead also became the WSL’s all-time assists provider and finished second in the Ballon d’Or and UEFA player of the year. What a list of achievements and what a year!

  Erling Haaland

  The Norwegian forward had scored more goals than ten Premier League sides before the World Cup break. So far, the 22-year-old dynamo has scored 18 goals in 13 Premier League games, which is only four short of the 22 goals recorded by Borussia Dortmund in the whole 2021/22 Bundesliga season. The terrifying concept is that he hasn’t yet reached his optimum form and could end the season with more goals than an entire Premier League team..