Philippe Coutinho Named Best in the Northwest

With the international break in full swing, most would have thought it safe to assume the only Philippe Coutinho news would be of the rumours involving Barcelona variety, but today there’s something a little more solid and close to home to report as the midfielder has won player of the year at the Northwest Football Awards.

Coutinho won for his contributions during the 2015-16 season, when he was also named Liverpool’s player of the season—though for those honours, Liverpool Offside readers saw things a little differently than most, giving the honour to Nathaniel Clyne and runner-up spot to Roberto Firmino, with Coutinho coming in third in voting.

With Coutinho away with Brazil, who are set to take on Peru in the early morning hours GMT overnight tonight, club ambassador Gary McAllister went to the awards ceremony to accept on his behalf and delivered a prepared statement.

“It’s a real honour to win this award,” read Coutinho’s statement. “The 2015-16 season was a fantastic one for me and for the team and I hope that I am able to continue to deliver performances and goals of this quality during this year’s Premier League campaign.”

Sergio Aguero won the award last year, while the year before it was won by Raheem Sterling—the surprise Liverpool nominee ahead of Luis Suarez. This year, Coutinho beat out Gareth Barry of Everton, Keven de Bruyne of Manchester City, and David de Gea of Manchester United.