Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
Pedants may protest that Eze’s sublime FA Cup form (quarter-final and semi-final screamers before a winner at Wembley) is inadmissable evidence in a Premier League review. But he was already one of the players of the season long before helping Crystal Palace win their first major trophy. Always capable of the spectacular, Eze’s stay at Selhurst Park had been characterised by inconsistency, but his finest season has come after he finished 2023-24 in red-hot form and earned a place in England’s Euros squad. The 26-year-old south Londoner has matured into a relentless menace to opposing defences who is downright unplayable at times. His eight Premier League goals and eight assists helped Palace to mid-table respectability under Oliver Glasner despite a worryingly slow start; they were winless in their opening eight league games. Playing in front of Adam Wharton, English football’s answer to Andrea Pirlo, certainly hasn’t hurt: is the former QPR player Eze now poised to follow Michael Olise and join one of Europe’s super-clubs? The romance of a European campaign under Glasner may prove more alluring but, regardless, his potential looks unlimited.
