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Some of the brightest stars in Premier League history have never made the PFA team of the year. Notable omissions include Luka Modric, Gianfranco Zola, Mesut Ozil, Xabi Alonso, and Robbie Fowler.
The PFA team of the year is determined by votes from professional footballers, yet some Premier League superstars have never made the cut. This includes a Ballon d'Or winner, a two-time Premier League top scorer, and multiple league champions.
Planet Football has compiled a ranking of the ten best players who graced the Premier League but never received a spot in the PFA team of the year.
- Mesut Ozil. During the 2015/16 season, the Arsenal midfielder provided 19 assists in the league, but surprisingly, he was overlooked for the PFA team. Overall, the German racked up 90 goal involvements in 184 top-flight matches.
- Steve Bruce. A three-time league champion with Manchester United, Bruce never made the PFA team. His centre-back partner Gary Pallister earned that recognition five times.
- Ricardo Carvalho. The Portuguese defender celebrated three Premier League titles with Chelsea but was passed over for the PFA team even in the 2005/06 season, when Chelsea conceded just 22 goals—John Terry and Jamie Carragher got the nod instead.
- Freddie Ljungberg. A vital part of one of Arsenal's greatest generations, including the legendary unbeaten season of 2003/04, Ljungberg was never picked in the PFA team of the year.
- Claude Makalele. The Frenchman's influence on the holding midfielder role was so significant that it essentially became known as the 'Makalele role.' Despite his success with Chelsea, he found himself without a spot in the PFA line-up.
- Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. Twice the league's top scorer, the Dutchman netted 127 goals in 288 Premier League matches for Leeds and Chelsea, yet that wasn't enough to earn him a place in the PFA team.
- Xabi Alonso. While he never won the league with Liverpool, the Spaniard was regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation. His teammate Steven Gerrard once said of Alonso's departure: 'I could not wish for a better partner in midfield, and when you left, it broke my heart.'
- Gianfranco Zola. The Italian spent seven years at Chelsea and was named Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year in 1997, yet even then, he was excluded from the PFA team, with Ian Wright and Alan Shearer filling the attacking spots.
- Luka Modric. The future Ballon d'Or winner featured for four seasons at Tottenham. Even in the stellar 2011/12 season, in which he shone, he was overlooked for a spot in the PFA team in favour of teammate Scott Parker.
- Robbie Fowler. Topping the list is the legendary Liverpool striker, who scored over 160 goals in the Premier League but was never selected for the PFA team of the year. Among players with that many top-flight goals, he remains the only one without that recognition.
