Liverpool striker Luis Suarez was rewarded for a remarkable season by landing the Professional Footballers' Association's Player of the Year award on Sunday night. Just a year ago the Uruguay international was starting a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic but fast-forward 12 months and the 27-year-old deservedly came out on top in a poll of his peers. Suarez travelled down to the ceremony at Grosvenor House in London after the Reds' 2-0 defeat at home to Chelsea earlier in the day, which dented their title hopes.
Chelsea's Eden Hazard, absent for the game at Anfield due to injury, was named winner of the Young Player of the Year award. Suarez was the overwhelming favourite for the top award after enjoying arguably the best season of his career. He has scored 30 league goals in 31 appearances, including two trebles and four goals in a devastating performance against Norwich in December. He was suspended for five matches at the start of the season as his ban for biting Ivanovic carried over into this campaign.
Suarez was one of three Liverpool players named in the Premier League team of the year, along with Steven Gerrard and Daniel Sturridge. Chelsea also had three players included, Petr Cech and Gary Cahill joining Hazard, while Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure were Manchester City's two representatives. Southampton duo Adam Lallana and Luke Shaw and Everton's Seamus Coleman made up the team.
PFA award winners
Player of the Year: Luis Suarez (Liverpool).
Young Player of the Year: Eden Hazard (Chelsea).
Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Liverpool Ladies).
Women's Young Player of the Year: Martha Harris (Liverpool Ladies).
Premier League Team of the Year: Cech (Chelsea); Shaw (Southampton), Cahill (Chelsea), Kompany (Man City), Coleman (Everton); Gerrard (Liverpool), Hazard (Chelsea), Lallana (Southampton), Toure (Man City); Sturridge (Liverpool), Suarez (Liverpool).
