Peter Crouch has made a bold prediction for player of the season, looking past Liverpool star Mohamed Salah.
Salah scooped the prize last season following a history-making campaign, becoming the first player to win the Golden Boot, Playmaker and Player of the Season awards in the same season.
The Egyptian scored 29 goals and provided 18 assists on the way to his second Premier League Player of the Season award, having also won back in 2018. The forward’s two awards puts him joint alongside Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Vidic and Kevin De Bruyne for most Player of the Season awards won.
However, competition in the Premier League is fierce and a third victory could be more elusive than it seems.
Speaking to TNT Sports, former Liverpool striker Crouch was asked for his Premier League predictions ahead of the new season and selected Salah’s teammate Florian Wirtz to collect the crown this year.
“I think Wirtz at Liverpool is a class act. I think he’ll light up the Premier League this year and I think Liverpool win the league, so it would have to go to someone from that team.
Mo Salah wins it every year, so let’s give it to Wirtz.”
Wirtz joined Liverpool for a British transfer record fee of £116 million in June after six seasons at Bayer Leverkusen. The German international has provided 22 goal contributions in each of last two seasons at Leverkusen, and was named Bundesliga Player of the Season as he helped Leverkusen to their first title in 2024.
The 22-year-old’s arrival in the Premier League has sparked excitement amongst Liverpool fans, with the ‘Kopites’ keen to see how he links up with Arne Slot’s new look attack alongside Hugo Ekitike.
The attacking midfielder provided the assist for Ekitike’s goal during his first competitive game for the club against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield on Sunday, kick-starting his Liverpool career.
Whether Wirtz can adapt to English football remains to be seen, but in Crouch he has a supporter who believes he can reach the very top.
