The end-of-season Liverpool awards
Liverpool as a team have had one of the best seasons in Premier League history.
Now that the campaign is over, the players and coaches alike will receive their deserved accolades.
We here at Anfield Central have decided to fall in line and hand out our very own awards.
From serious categories like Game of the Season to more light-hearted ones like the Funniest Moment, we have it all covered.
Player of the Season
In a record-breaking season like Liverpool have had, it is hardly a surprise that there are so many contenders for our first award.
Sadio Mane came closest, but we have to give it to Jordan Henderson.
The Football Writers Footballer of the Season, Henderson has been the catalyst for Liverpool's title win.
Many have spoken about his leadership and how he drives his teammates on. But this means that his ability on the pitch is overlooked.
When playing as the holding midfielder or as the box-to-box player, Henderson does so much more for this team than simply shout at his peers.
The counter-attacks that he stops, his range of passing and his unmatched physicality are just some of the attributes that get overlooked time and time again.
Mane and Salah strike in the key moments, but for 90 minutes every single week, Jordan Henderson is on top form.
The worthiest of winners.
Young Player of the Season
It almost feels like cheating giving this to Alexander-Arnold. But yes, he is still only 21.
There is not much left to say about the gifted Scouser that has not already been said.
A 21-year-old right-back with four goals and 13 assists in the league. The chief creator of the champions of England, Europe and the World.
He broke his own record for assists in a season by a defender in the Premier League.
Generational talent.
Academy Player of the Season
The emergence of Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott and Neco Williams is yet another positive for Liverpool.
In 2019/20, Jones was the pick of the bunch.
In his 10 appearances in all competitions, he scored three goals.
The local lad only turned 19 in January and became Liverpool's youngest ever captain in the FA Cup replay against Shrewsbury.
The highlight of his season will undoubtedly be his winner against Everton in the same competition. His wondergoal saw the Reds beat their local rivals 1-0.
He also stepped up and scored the winning penalty in the League Cup shoot-out against Arsenal.
He performed at under 23 level too, winning the Premier League 2 Player of the Season Award.
Expect to see more of him next season and beyond.
Goal of the Season
Andy Robertson vs Red Bull Salzburg
From the individual brilliance of Mane and Salah to the thunderbolts of Jones, Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, as well as some magic from Divock Origi, Liverpool fans have seen their fair share of wondergoals this season.
But the finest of the lot was a fantastic team goal started and finished by Andy Robertson in the 4-3 win over Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League group stage last October.
The Scot picks up the ball in his own half and drives through the midfield. He passes it to Jordan Henderson in the middle, who plays a lovely one-two with Salah. Henderson then finds Alexander-Arnold making an overlap on the right-hand-side. Alexander-Arnold crosses into the box, where Robertson had continued his run to tap home the finish.
The fact that it was started and finished by one man, plus the fact that the final four touches were all by different players make this simply mesmerizing to watch.
Assist of the Season
Firmino vs Newcastle
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson have produced numerous fantastic assists, mainly from crosses and set-pieces.
Henderson, Fabinho and Dejan Lovren have also delivered some fine over-the-top assists, showing fantastic vision and execution.
But the assist of the season has to go to Roberto Firmino.
In typical Firmino fashion, his assist for Mo Salah against Newcastle in September was a thing of beauty.
Doing what he does best, he received the ball from the Egyptian with two defenders around him. It looked like there was nowhere to go, but before anyone knew it the ball was back at Salah's feet after a mystical Zidane-spin style flick.
All Salah had to do was take two touches and finish, which he did with aplomb.
Game of the Season
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Carabao Cup)
This was by no means Liverpool's most important game of the season. Jurgen Klopp's team selection was enough evidence of this.
Sandwiched between important league games against Tottenham and Aston Villa, the Reds hosted Arsenal in a League Cup round of 16 tie.
In terms of pure end-to-end drama and excitement, this was no doubt the game of the season.
After going a goal up, Liverpool found themselves 3-1 down after 36 minutes.
A James Milner penalty pulled one back just before halftime before his mistake restored the Gunners' two-goal advantage in the 54th minute.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain then scored a goal of the season candidate against his former club, before Divock Origi completed the fightback with a fine turn and shot.
There was a feeling that the game was Liverpool's at this point, but in the 70th minute, Joe Willock scored another fantastic goal to regain Arsenal's lead.
But in the 94th minute, that man Divock Origi stepped up with an acrobatic effort and pulled the game back, as he is so accustomed to doing.
The drama didn't end there, as the game went into a penalty shoot-out.
After Caomhin Kelleher stopped Dani Ceballos's effort, it was left to local teenager Curtis Jones to win the game.
Calm as you like in front of the Kop, with a short run-up, he did just that.
And breathe.
Loan Player of the Season
Rhian Brewster
Liverpool had an army of talent out on loan in 2019/20.
Harry Wilson started well at Bournemouth before fading off as the season wore on, while Marko Grujic was very impressive for Hertha Berlin.
Yet the pick of the bunch has to be Rhian Brewster.
The 20-year-old joined his ex-England youth coach Steve Cooper at Swansea City and proved his undoubted quality.
His 10 goals in 20 Championship games saw the Welsh side qualify for the playoffs on the final day.
Despite scoring in the second led, Brentford overcame Brewster's side in the semi-final, thus ending his spell at the club.
He returns to Merseyside with a record of a goal every other game, reaffirming himself as one of Liverpool's top young talents.
Best Team Performance
While this season saw Liverpool display levels of consistency never seen before, they rarely blew teams off the park as they did early in Klopp's reign.
But Boxing Day saw the Reds at their free-flowing best.
Right in the middle of the busiest period of the season came a difficult away trip to high-flying Leicester City.
Liverpool showed no signs of jet lag after their recent return from Qatar after winning the Club World Cup and dismantled the team that many claimed were their closest title challengers.
Trent Alexander-Arnold produced a masterclass with two assists and a goal, while Roberto Firmino bagged a double.
The Reds had 58.8% of the possession, while they also took 15 shots compared to Leicester's three.
It was a complete performance in extremely difficult circumstances. It kept the 100% league record intact and proved to be the moment that many fans believed that this was Liverpool's year.
Best Individual Performance
Sadio Mane vs Everton
Alexander-Arnold's performance in the game above would undoubtedly be a worthy winner.
But to change things up, we'll go with Mane in the home game against Everton in December.
Liverpool were cruising to the league title, but the local rivals were still determined to spoil the party.
So when Jurgen Klopp left out Jordan Henderson, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, it was a big shock. Was the Merseyside derby really the time to be resting key men?
But Sadio Mane was still in the team.
He inspired Liverpool to a memorable 5-2 victory with a goal and two assists in the first half.
His first assist for Divock Origi was nothing short of world-class, as was his second for Xherdan Shaqiri.
His goal was superb too, as he started the counter-attack outside his own box by rounding Alex Iwobi, before passing to Alexander-Arnold who, carried it to the edge of the Everton box.
He then teed up Mane, who had made a lung-busting run of his own, whose finish was simply sublime.
Mane completed the most dribbles, as well as taking the joint-most shots and making the joint-most key passes on the pitch.
The manner in which he dragged, without disrespecting Origi and Shaqiri, a second-string set of partners to a top-class attacking performance should not go under the radar.
Shock of the Season
Loss to Watford
Aside from the obvious global pandemic, Liverpool's 3-0 defeat to Watford must be the biggest shock of the Premier League season.
The Reds had managed to get to February without being beaten in the league, drawing only once. This led to many tipping them to record an invincible season.
Everyone expected them to go to Vicarage Road and pick up an easy three points against the side placed 19th in the table.
But the reality was far removed from the expectation.
The Hornets not only managed to hold Liverpool scoreless, but they also managed to score three goals of their own.
Troy Deeney bullied Dejan Lovren all game long, while Ismaila Sarr announced himself to the Premier League.
It was one of those unexplainable occurrences that perhaps reminded Liverpool that there was still work to be done if they wanted to be crowned champions of England.
It is even more shocking in hindsight, as Watford went on to be relegated.
Liverpool's Best Kit
Goalkeeper home
New Balance's final season making Liverpool's kits was another strong showing.
The home shirt will go down in history as the one worn by the team when they brought home their first league title for thirty years.
The away and third shirts were lovely designs, with the mint-coloured training gear also proving popular with fans.
Yet the home goalkeeper shirt was the best of them all.
Black and gold never fails to deliver and this kit was made even better by the fact that it was worn by Alisson.
Interview of the Season
Jurgen Klopp post-title win
Liverpool's 2019/20 season was like something from a storybook, with the regular voices of Jordan Henderson, Virgil van Dijk and, of course, Jurgen Klopp setting the tone every single week in their pre- and post-match interviews.
Henderson's flat-out refusal to admit the fact that Liverpool were going to win the league was a staple of the campaign, so his many interviews after it was mathematically secured have been a joy to watch.
Jurgen Klopp was in a similar boat, always steering the interviewer towards the next game, rather than the inevitable title victory.
So when Sky Sports managed to get him on a video call after Manchester City conceded defeat to Chelsea and, hence, the title to Liverpool, it was always going to be must-watch.
Sitting in a hotel where the squad had gathered to watch the match and celebrate their success, Klopp was interviewed by David Jones, with Jamie Redknapp, Phil Thompson, Graeme Souness and Kenny Dalglish also in virtual attendance.
The boss was visibly emotional and managed to pay homage to everyone he could think of.
It finished when he was on the verge of tears, clearly too overcome with emotion, and probably relief, to continue.
Evidence, if any was needed, of how the German has made Liverpool his second home and how he loves this club as much as any Scouser.
Funniest Moment of the Season
Beating Everton with the kids
In the age of social media, players are able to show off their personalities more than ever before.
Antics from the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Virgil van Dijk have managed to keep fans entertained via their own social media channels, as well as the club's platforms.
On-field, there was Pep Guardiola's infamous "twice" rant during the Reds' 3-1 win over his side that had every non-City fan in stitches.
But the funniest moment of the year has to be when what can only be described as Liverpool's C team took on Everton in the FA Cup - and won.
A team featuring Neco Williams, Nat Phillips (brought back from his loan spell at Stuttgart to beat Everton, before returning to Germany), Pedro Chirivella, Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott in the starting line-up managed to defeat Everton's strongest side.
Yasser Larouci was also introduced as a ninth-minute substitute, while Rhian Brewster also featured.
Curtis Jones scored a memorable winner, with a stunner in the 71st minute.
Poor old Everton never seem to get a break and they still suffer social media abuse about this match to this day.
As Bill Shankly said: "Liverpool has two great teams - Liverpool and Liverpool's reserves".
Liverpool's Best Youtube Video
The Chaokoh team meeting
Everything about this video was comedic brilliance.
A marketing ploy for sponsors Chaokoh, six first-teamers were tasked with coming up with an interesting advert for the coconut brand.
They had the characterization down to a T - Henderson as the moody boss, Robertson as the over-enthusiastic assistant, Firmino the disinterested phone-addict, Lovren the even moodier big man, Jones the youngster who can't get a word in and, best of all, Joel Matip delivering pointless facts.
It was a hilarious idea, which the players pulled off to perfection.
Celebration of the Season
Salah vs Man United
This was the game that inspired fans to finally believe that the title was Merseyside-bound.
The outpour of emotion after Mo Salah's 93rd-minute goal which cemented Liverpool's victory over arch-rivals Manchester United was nothing short of glorious.
Salah whipping his shirt off in front of the Kop, assist-maker Alisson running the field to join him with a remarkable knee-slide and the fans singing "We're gonna win the league" in full voice.
Simply magical.
Best Trick
Roberto Firmino rabona vs Genk
If only Sadio Mane had scored after THIS from Roberto Firmino.
The quick-thinking to dream it up. The audacity to actually pull it off.
You can take the man out of Brazil...
Moment of the Season
Premier League Trophy lift
A season full of historical Liverpool moments, yet there can really only be one winner of this award.
Yes, the league was mathematically secured weeks before. It was practically secured months before.
But Jordan Henderson lifting the Premier League trophy for Liverpool Football Club.
Enough said?
Yes, it was, of course, fantastic to hear the final whistle in the Chelsea-City game. It was even better to see the videos of the players celebrating together afterwards.
But this is what will be shown time and time again for decades to come.
What a memory. What a club.
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