Manchester City have won the Premier League 2 regular season and are in the final of the play-off competition for the top six teams. Now they have another accolade from a positive PL2 campaign.
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MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 18: Jahmai Simpson-Pusey of Manchester City during the UEFA Youth League match between Manchester City and FC Internazionale at Joie Stadium on September 18, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey's season has gone from strength to strength, with the Manchester City defender now rewarded with a prestigious personal award.
The list of names to win the Premier League 2 Player of the Season is a mightily impressive one. Now there is another Manchester City winner from a campaign that could yet yield one more trophy and maybe a lot of money in the future.
City dominated the PL2 in its previous format before a 2024 change, winning three titles in a row and three Player of the Season awards to go with it. Liam Delap, James McAtee and Carlos Borges followed recognisable names in earlier years from Liverpool's Curtis Jones, Arsenal forward Reiss Nelson, former Brighton striker Aaron Connolly and ex-Premier League striker Oli McBurnie.
The 2024/25 winner is City under-21 captain Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, who led his side to a regular season title win before starting each game en-route to next week's final against Southampton in the play-offs, having beaten Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United so far.
Simpson-Pusey featured on City's pre-season tour with most senior squad members missing, going on to make six first-team appearances during the worst of Pep Guardiola's injury crisis. That included Premier League and Champions League debuts, before returning to the under-21s to play a vital role in their title win. He had turned down the option to leave on loan in the summer in favour of fighting for a first team place if he could.
Guardiola called him exceptional on his Champions League debut at Sporting and his attitude since returning to the academy has been noticed by coaches. "When he speaks I just listen. There’s nothing else to do," the 19-year-old told MEN Sport back in November of Guardiola's training style.
"I just feel like I have to listen because he’s the best manager in the world. The way he does stuff, even if you don’t understand it, when he’s moving his hands around you just understand it automatically. It was great to be in and around. The manager wants what he wants. I can’t argue with that - I just have to wait and hopefully my time will come."
Simpson-Pusey beat teammate Emilio Lawrence to the award, as well as Arsenal forward Khayon Edwards, Chelsea's Donnell McNeilly, plus starlets from West Ham and Fulham. Simpson-Pusey makes history as the first defender to win the PL2 Player of the Season.
And his victory could represent a future windfall for City if his career takes him away from the Etihad. Previous winners Delap and Borges have already earned City £37m in transfer fees and could further boost City's transfer budget if they secure expected transfers this summer thanks to sell-on clauses in their respective sales.
McAtee has helped City in the second half of the season after proving himself on loan at Sheffield United for two previous seasons. He could be sold this summer with a reported asking price of £25m, further underlining the transfer value attached to City players considered the best player in the PL2.
“To receive this award in such a competitive league with lots of amazing talent is a huge honour for me,” said Simpson-Pusey.
“I feel like this has been my best season representing City and I’m really glad it’s helped the team win the PL2 league and reach the play-off final, which we are excited to be competing in.
“This squad is a great team to be a part of as we all push each other to be the best we can be every day, and I think we’ve seen that with the new records we’ve hit this season, even more so following a difficult season last year.
“But this also wouldn’t have been possible without those around me, so I’d also like to say thank you to Ben [Wilkinson], Craig [Mudd] all the coaching staff and my team-mates too.”
U21 head coach Wilkinson said last week that a number of players in his squad are ready to step up to first team football next season, wherever that may be. Given Delap, McAtee and Borges never looked back after their PL2 awards, maybe Simpson-Pusey is another senior player ready to be unleashed.
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