Jürgen Klopp and Adam Lallana Shortlisted for Monthly Awards

The accolades keep coming. Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp and his protégé, Adam Lallana, have both been shortlisted for the monthly gongs respectively for manager and player of September.

Going 3-0 for the month, all of which were dominant performances, with two coming against title contenders, Klopp goes up against Arsenal’s Arsène Wenger, Tottenham’s Mauricio Pochettino, Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola and Crystal Palace’s Alan Pardew for the award. While admittedly slightly partial here at TLO, it might be useful to note that the each of the other contenders at most had only one statement win over a marquee opponent in the month: Guardiola’s 2-1 besting of José Mourinho’s Manchester United, Wenger’s 3-0 dismantling of Chelsea, while Pochettino’s big win against City came in the month of October. Klopp’s side, on the other hand, dominated both Chelsea and last year’s champions Leicester City, while also thrashing Hull City 5-1. Just saying.

On the pitch, the nominations largely follow those of the managers, as a resurgent Lallana is joined by Arsenal’s Theo Walcott, Everton’s Romelu Lukaku, Tottenham’s Heung-min Son and City’s Kevin De Bruyne on the shortlist. With two goals and two assists for the month—including a stunner in the Anfield opener against Leicester City—in addition to also topping the individual distance charts with some all-action displays, the former Southampton man’s contributions on both the offensive and the defensive ends of the pitch make him a favorite to scoop a well-deserved accolade.

The decision will be made by a combination of Premier League team captains, a public poll worth 10% of the vote and a panel including former players such as Thierry Henry and our very own (and surely impartial) Jamie Carragher.

We at least know how one of those votes will be going.