Fabregas and Ronaldo make the early running to be crowned Player of the Year

Betfacts / Mike Norman / 21 November 2007 / Leave a comment Free £25 Bet

It may still be a fair way off but Mike Norman assesses which stars have shone brightest in the Premiership season so far

The international break - you either love it or hate it. Personally I hate it. I enjoy getting behind my country of course, and I can fully understand the reasons for having plenty of preparation time for a vital qualifier. But as a mad football fan, all I want is my regular fix of Premiership action - and at the moment, like the contestants in the Aussie jungle, I'm not getting any!

So while the rest of the nation have been cheering on Israel, and waiting nervously to see if England at least draw against a team that lost to Macedonia at the weekend, I've been looking back at the Premiership and the players that have made a big impression so far this season. The hope is to find someone that might represent a bit of value if you're thinking of having a punt in the Soccer Specials on who will be named the PFA Player of the Year for 2007/08.

Whilst this prestigious award normally gets won by a player from one of the big four clubs, it's still worth acknowledging the tremendous impact that a few players have made at the other clubs that are doing so well. Micah Richard (Player of the Month for August) is one name, and he can be backed at [20.0] to be named 'Player of the Year'. He has been outstanding for Manchester City this term and, along with fellow team-mates Elano and Michael Johnson, is one of the reasons why Sven's men have made an impressive start to their campaign.

David Bentley, the England player the fans love to hate, is trading at [36.0] and, though I admire his talent and appreciate how well he is playing for Blackburn, I think there's more chance of getting a bus to the moon than the PFA giving their top award to a player who snubbed his country. Portsmouth's Benjani has been a revelation this season, transforming himself from a player that couldn't hit a barn door, to the leading goalscorer in the Premiership ([18.0] to stay there). He is unquoted in the 'Player of the Year' market but don't forget, any player can be added upon request.

So to the big guns, and it has to be said that most of them have had a stop-start season so far. I wouldn't let this worry anyone though, as the award normally goes to a player that impresses between Christmas time and the Premiership trophy being lifted. However, the performances of Cesc Fabregas (September's Player of the Month) for Arsenal this season have been quite breathtaking. He's trading at a ridiculously short [1.73] considering there is so much of the season left to play, but he has so far scored 6 goals and has 6 assists to his name from midfield. (source: www.premierleague.com). He can also be relied upon to perform consistently well providing he avoids serious injury, and it will be a brave man who chooses to lay him at [2.1].

Over at Manchester United, Rooney ([10.5]) and Ronaldo ([7.0]) have started to play like they did last season and have put in some very impressive displays of late. It's a shame that Rooney (October's Player of the Month) has picked up yet another injury, but I can see Ronaldo getting better as the months tick by. At the odds he is my idea of a value bet to pick up back-to-back 'Player of the Year' awards.

I've been impressed with the style of Fernando Torres at Liverpool, but he hasn't exactly set the Premiership alight with his performances and I would avoid him like the plague at [4.7]. However, one player who represents an excellent back-to-lay opportunity is Arsenal's Robin van Persie. He has been excellent when playing this season, and you can rest assured that once he returns from injury and starts scoring for fun, his current odds of around [30.0] will quickly evaporate.

So who is your idea of the outstanding player of the season so far, and who do you think will be crowned PFA Player of the Year 2007/08? At least after I've cheered England on, I will be back to my normal self, knowing that the Premiership is about to return - and unlike poor old Christopher Biggins who's still lost in the jungle, I will be getting some action over the next six months.

Tags: fabregas, player of the year, ronaldo, torres