Chelsea took home the top prizes as Antonio Conte and N’Golo Kante were honoured at the 2017 London Football Awards.
The Italian was named Manager of the Year for guiding the Blues to the top of the Premier League table ahead of an expected title win in his first season in England.
Kante won Player of the Year, having continued his stellar performances for Leicester City after a £32 million move to Stamford Bridge, and looks on course to claim back-to-back titles.
Conte has thrived since becoming Jose Mourinho’s permanent replacement, overseeing just losses as Chelsea opened up a 10-point gap over their nearest rivals.
The Italian is looking to emulate compatriot Carlo Ancelotti by winning the league and FA Cup in his first season at Stamford Bridge, with a quarter-final date against Manchester United upcoming.
Kante, meanwhile, will be hoping to add to the Premier League winners’ medal of last season with another this term, becoming the first key player since Eric Cantona to win consecutive championships for different clubs.
Cantona, another Frenchman, is the last player to claim back-to-back Premier League crowns with different clubs – Leeds United’s 1991/92 win followed by Manchester United’s in 1992/93 – though goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer featured in both Chelsea and Leicester’s squads (for 2015 and 2016) but failed to make a single league outing.
The 25-year-old beat off competition from fellow nominees Alexis Sanchez, Dele Alli, Danny Rose and Blues team-mate Diego Costa to named the winner at the awards gala in Battersea on Thursday evening.
The latest honour caps a remarkable 18 months for the France international, who looks on course to win successive titles after Leicester City’s 5,000-1 triumph last season and Chelsea currently sitting 10 points clear this term.
Kante arrived in England in the summer of 2015, joining Leicester as one of Claudio Ranieri’s first signings, and quickly established himself as key to the Foxes shock top-flight triumph nine months later, recording more tackles and interceptions than any other player in the division.
A move to Chelsea soon followed, for a fee of around £32 million, and Kante picked up where he left off at the King Power Stadium in west London.
The 25-year-old has missed just one game this season and is one of the favourites to be named PFA Player of the Year as Chelsea close in on the Premier League title.
Elsewhere, Tottenham pair Hugo Lloris and Dele Alli were named Goalkeeper and Young Player of the Year, while Fulham’s Tom Cairney was crowned EFL Player of the Year.
COMMENTS