It may not be quite up there with being named the Premier League's player of the season or Europe's golden boy, but Raheem Sterling took home best of the year honours last night at the Northwest Football Awards. The awards seek to highlight the best of England's north-west, which in the Premier League categories means a battle between Liverpool, Everton, and the two Manchester Clubs.
Liverpool typically comes out ahead, as the previous two Player of the Year awards were a somewhat sentimental pick of Jamie Carragher in 2013 and Martin Skrtel in 2012, following the season in which the Slovak had been named Liverpool's player of the season. It's not a massive surprise, then, to see Sterling take honours this time around. He beat out Yaya Toure, David de Gea, and Everton's nominee, Seamus Coleman.
The awards ceremony, held at Old Trafford, also saw Kenny Dalglish presented with a lifetime contribution award.