Chelsea stars Eden Hazard and N'Golo Kante, as well as Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, are among the six candidates for this season's PFA Player of the Year award.

They are joined on the shortlist by Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur, Everton's Romelu Lukaku and Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez. Both Kane and Lukaku are also nominated for the Young Player of the Year.

Hazard, who was named best young player in 2013-14 and won the senior award in 2014-15, has bounced back from a poor season in the last campaign to be a crucial figure behind Chelsea's march towards the Premier League title this season. He has scored 14 league goals this season, and provided five assists, to put Chelsea seven points clear of Spurs.

But Kante is the heavy odds-on favourite with the bookmakers to win after being on the shortlist as a title winner with Leicester City last season, when teammate Riyad Mahrez topped the voting. Credited as the key signing to transform the Blues from a team which finished 10th into runaway leaders, his energy in the middle of the park has been the driving force.

Kante is also on course to become the first player to win the title with different clubs in successive seasons. Mark Schwarzer did it the other way around with Chelsea and then Leicester last season, but his win with the Foxes doesn't officially count as he didn't qualify for a medal after making no appearances.

Ibrahimovic, at the age of 35, has had a stellar first season in the Premier League with Manchester United, who are hoping he will extend his contract. He has netted 17 goals in 27 Premier League games, with another 11 in other competitions. He scored two goals, including the late winner, against Southampton in the EFL Cup final and still hopes to shoot United to success in the Europa League and a top-four finish.

Kane, who won the young player award in 2014-15 and the Golden Boot last season, is again on the shortlist after scoring 19 goals in 22 games for a Spurs side that is trying to chase down Chelsea. He continues to be one of the most prolific strikers in Europe despite having two injury layoffs this campaign.

Lukaku leads the Premier League scoring chart this season with 23 goals, four ahead of Kane, and has also provided six assists making him the player involved in most goals, 29.

Sanchez, meanwhile, is just behind having been involved in 27 goals with 18 scored and nine set up -- but Arsenal's dip in form after the turn of the year makes him the outsider of the six.

Kane and Lukaku, who will both turn 24 in the coming weeks, are joined on the young player award by by Tottenham's Dele Alli, Leroy Sane of Manchester City, Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and Burnley centre-back Michael Keane.

Alli, who turned 21 on Tuesday, has had another incredible season with 16 goals scored and five assists and, like Kante, is the huge favourite in the betting to retain the award he won last season.

Pickford, 23, has had an excellent first season in a struggling Sunderland side, called into action following an injury to Vito Mannone and, barring a short injury layoff, is now installed as the club's No. 1. He was also called into the senior England squad for the first time but still awaits his full debut.

Keane, 24, did make his England bow last month, winning caps against Germany and Lithuania, and has been a rock in a Burnley defence that looks set to secure a second successive season in the Premier League.

Sane, 21, has come of age in the second half of the season, scoring seven goals in all competitions having netted only once before Christmas.

[url]m.espn.com/soccer/story?storyId=3102577&top&wjb=[/url]

WHO WOULD HAVE WIN THE AWARD

Drop your comments below:::

Hazard will win it. That guy is from outta space. #GGMU tho'

I vote for Alexis Sanchez! Alexis Sanchez ALL THE WAY!!!

Shelloween:
Hazard will win it. That guy is from outta space. #GGMU tho'

Out of galaxy nii. If not for goals scored, n'golo is d man. #GGMU.

nepapole:

Out of galaxy nii. If not for goals scored, n'golo is d man. #GGMU.

N'golo is a great player but, have you ever wondered why Iniesta or Xavi never won the Ballon d'or? Are they not the Midfield gods? Why is it that Messi won many times and they didn't even win it once? Are they not the ones assissting most of Messi's goals? Strikers win the awards.... Midfielders get a nomination.

Shelloween:
N'golo is a great player but, have you ever wondered why Iniesta or Xavi never won the Ballon d'or? Are they not the Midfield gods? Why is it that Messi won many times and they didn't even win it once? Are they not the ones assissting most of Messi's goals? Strikers win the awards.... Midfielders get a nomination.

Its y football is messed up these days. The days of figo, zidane, canavaro will never return. The same reason cr7 swapped skills for goals. Its crap mehn.

Give it to the GOD of MANCHESTER ZLAT

And the winner iz Zlatan

OP I couldn't find my name on that list

Chelsea fans will soon come here to brag and compared hazard to Cr7 or neymar






Dude fighting for Pfa when his mate are fighting for ballon'dor

Zlatan Ibrahimovic ...GGMU

Its between Hazard and Kante

Team Lukaku

Toyin001:
I vote for Alexis Sanchez! Alexis Sanchez ALL THE WAY!!!

NAWA O

Ngolo kante
He is everywhere like MTNigeria.
He is the only player to gives a long pass to himself
He is following everyone on the pitch
He covered 30% of the world where water covered the remaining 70%
I am not yet on twitter and instagram and he is already following me.
Ngolo Nwude Kante

Toyin001:
I vote for Alexis Sanchez! Alexis Sanchez ALL THE WAY!!!

how does that failure deserve it? Na wa ooooo he shouldn't even be on this list , firmino and mane did much beta than him


There are 100 players than performed beta than sanchez , many

do4luv14:
Give it to the GOD of MANCHESTER ZLAT

NAWA O

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just gat to be hazard...next on the list should be kante

hazard

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Kante all the way

Ngolo kante or hazard
Ktbffh

I know the Benjamin button of football will be there
#GloryGloryManUtd
#zlatanisagod

Tipping Alagolo Kante for it though...

LUKAKU deserves that award considering how he's been performing and hitting other clubs in the midst of a club surrounded with average players unlike the other nominees who have stars around them.

h

Na Hazard go carry am.

Arsenal fans, you guys saw what we did yesterday?



Hala Madrid

KingAfo:
And the winner iz Zlatan

One weightless club from London raped your sorry ass double this season.And guess what?,they v got easter present for you on Sunday.. KTBFFH

Lukaku all the way

How many times will Dele Alli keep winning young player of the yr