Dowman, Cherki, Kroupi and the wonderkids nominated for PFA Young Player of the Year

5 Jun 2026 15:01 BST | 6 min read

Martin Macdonald | Writer

Content writer covering football, formula 1 and movies

The PFA Young Player of the Year award is one of the most prestigious individual honours in English football, recognising the standout wonderkids of the season.

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In the first three rounds of the 2025/26 season, the 20 top-flight teams fielded the youngest average starting XI's in Premier League history at 26 years and 217 days.

It is undoubtedly a trend that is emerging, as last season saw an average starting XI age of 26 years and 273 days, three days younger than the previous record set in 2007/08.

The Premier League is getting younger and younger and that means more opportunities for wonderkids to impress.

A coveted honour, the PFA Young Player of the Year Award has been won in the past by future stars like David Beckham, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Cesc Fabregas, Eden Hazard and Bukayo Saka.

Last year's winner was Morgan Rogers and here are the six nominees from this past season looking to follow in the Aston Villa man's footsteps.

Rayan Cherki (Man City)

Bruno Fernandes broke the record for the most assists in a Premier League season with 21 and the player next on that list was Rayan Cherki with 12.

Not necessarily seen as a coachable robot but rather an unpredictable maverick, there were questions over whether the Frenchman would flourish under Pep Guardiola but he eventually alleviated those doubts after taking a month or two to settle in England.

In his first season in a new country, he managed 25 goal contributions in all competitions and that's a hell of a return for a young player in different surroundings.

He's a player that Man City should be able to enjoy for years as he's just 22 and, crucially, it appears that Erling Haaland loves playing alongside him.

Max Dowman (Arsenal)

Max Dowman made history in March when he became the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history at just 16 years and 73 days old.

In the 89th minute in a must-win game against Everton, he sent a wicked cross to the back post that was smothered back into the danger area by Piero Hincapie, with Viktor Gyokeres positioned to pass into the empty net.

The 16-year-old would have the defining moment of his career so far in the 97th minute, however.

After Arsenal successfully defended an Everton corner, with Jordan Pickford inside the opposition box, Dowman collected possession and showed incredible composure to glide past a few Toffees players before charging downfield to pass into the empty net.

It was a moment that will be remembered if he turns into the superstar that Arsenal hope he will.

It should be noted that his inclusion in the nominations list has raised some eyebrows as he's only played 153 minutes of action in the league this campaign.

Junior Kroupi (Bournemouth)

Bournemouth relied heavily on a lot of young talent to push themselves to European qualification this season and Junior Kroupi was the best of the bunch.

The young Frenchman helped Cherries qualify for next season’s Europa League by scoring on 13 occasions, which is a record for the most Premier League goals scored by a teenager in their debut campaign.

After a scintillating campaign, he's now a wanted man, and by the champions of Europe, no less, as Luis Enrique is apparently keen on adding him to the star-studded squad at Paris Saint-Germain.

Arsenal have also been credited with an interest, though he is expected to cost anything between €80m and €100m.

Kobbie Mainoo (Man Utd)

At one point, Kobbie Mainoo's Manchester United career looked to have flatlined as he was given barely any minutes on the field by then-manager Ruben Amorim.

In order to ensure his place in the England squad for the World Cup, a temporary loan switch to Napoli was mentioned, while there was talk that he could leave the Red Devils altogether.

That move didn't happen and more time was spent on the bench before Amorim was sacked and Michael Carrick came in, with the Englishman quickly re-inserting Mainoo back into the starting XI.

He excelled under Carrick and was a key member of the squad as they eventually secured qualification to the Champions League, while his performances did indeed see him earn a call to the World Cup.

Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool)

Rio Ngumoha, a controversial acquisition from Chelsea, burst onto the scene at Liverpool this season with a winning goal in one of the best matches of the campaign.

The Reds went 2-0 up against Newcastle in August and were pegged back to 2-2 by the hosts. Cue Nguhoma coming off the bench to score a gorgeous curled finish into the right corner from inside the box, showing composure that defied his young age.

It hasn't been easy for the youngster this season as he received minimal minutes from Arne Slot, who was actually booed on a couple of occasions when Nguhoma was substituted.

In some ways, he's enjoyed a perfect first season in the senior squad, though. At just 17 he has been given playing time at a huge club, while he enjoyed a major highlight moment with that cracking goal against Newcastle.

Nico O’Reilly (Man City)

What has stood out most about Nico O'Reilly is his versatility and maturity. He’s been used mainly at left-back, and City leaned on him in a difficult spell because he has given them energy, defensive work-rate, and quality on the ball.

His ascendancy to becoming one of City's key players has been remarkable considering the talent in their squad and he is now considered one of the best, if not the best, left-backs in the Premier League currently.

An academy boy, he's City through and through and you can tell by his passion when he pulls on that blue kit.

In the 2026 League Cup final, he remarkably scored both goals in City's 2-0 win over Arsenal at Wembley.

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Read more about: Premier League Arsenal B'mouth Liverpool Man City Man Utd Junior Kroupi Kobbie Mainoo Max Dowman Nico O'Reilly Rayan Cherki Rio Ngumoha

Written by

Martin Macdonald | Writer

Martin Macdonald. a Content Writer for FootballTransfers and FootballTransfers USA, as well as the Business Operations Manager for RealTimes Network, has worked in football reporting for over 15 years, starting at GOAL and Perform Media before moving to RealTimes. He was formerly the Chief Editor of MovieMeter.com and has also written for FightFans, GPFans and MSN.

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