For the first few weeks of the season, it wasn't particularly clear which version of Philippe Coutinho was going to arrive. During the preseason he was superb, looking poised for a breakout season both domestically and on the continent, with Liverpool back in the Champions League for the first time since 2009. Coutinho had featured in the competition before with Inter, but a few years' growth and a sparkling run through July and early August had most expecting that he would be setting the world alight when it counted.
It didn't quite work out that way, as his form dropped significantly along with Liverpool's; the Brazilian playmaker looked lost and ineffective along with the rest of his teammates, and the moments of magic proved few and far between. As the formation and personnel changed, however, so too did Coutinho's form, and the 22-year-old was once again at the heart of nearly everything Liverpool has done well since.
Sunday he was rewarded for those efforts with a spot in the PFA Team of the year, joining the likes of Harry Kane, Eden Hazard, Alexis Sanchez, Nemanja Matic, and David De Gea. Chelsea led the way with six players in the squad, with no other team in the Premier League producing more than one.
Congratulations to the Barclays @PremierLeague PFA Team of the Year! #PFAawards pic.twitter.com/OL4VulUv7T
— PFA (@PFA) April 26, 2015
Congratulations to him, and hopefully there's many more seasons--ones far more successful at the club level--to come.