After the PSL announced nominees for various awards, KickOff.com analyses who stood out statistically for Players' Player of the Season and Footballer of the Season awards.
There is always a debate on whether individual performances should be independent of the team's showing throughout the season.
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However, how a particular team performs usually is a marker of how the stars of their teams have been influential.
And so in the Players' Player of the Season category (where only the Betway Premiership is considered), that has Lucas Ribeiro Costa of Mamelodi Sundowns, Keletso Makgalwa of Sekhukhune United and Orlando Pirates' Relebohile Mofokeng.
Costa could appear to be the favourite, considering that he had a 25 goal contribution (16 goals and nine assists) to Sundowns winning the Betway Premiership while direct rival Mofokeng had 13 goal contributions (five goals and eight assists).
There is a case to be made also that Makgalwa playing for a team with less resources than Masandawana and The Buccaneers, managed 15 goal contributions, better than Mofokeng statistically (four goals and 11 assists).
When it comes to Footballer of the Season award, where the same trio of players are in contention, how far their teams made it in cup competitions (in addition to league games) would be a crucial determining factor (as this award includes all tournaments domestically).
Mofokeng had a better showing for Pirates in cup tournaments, as he was influential in the Buccaneers winning the MTN8, scoring two goals and two assists while the 20-year-old also reached the Nedbank Cup final but lost to Kaizer Chiefs.
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The only blemish for the Sharpeville native is that Ezimnyama were knocked out in the first round of the Carling Knockout.
The Brazilian forward's best showing in cup competitions, meanwhile, was a final of the Carling Knockout, with one goal and three assists but only for the Tshwane giants to lose to Magesi.
Costa could not get into the scoring charts when Sundowns got knocked out of the MTN8 in the semi-finals and ended up in the Nedbank Cup semi-finals as well.
Makgalwa only went as far as the Nedbank Cup quarter-finals with Sekhukhune, who otherwise suffered first round exits in other cups, without charting, although it has to be borne in mind that Babina Noko has far less chances of going deep in multiple competitions, compared to Pirates and Sundowns.
The Players' Player of the Season award came with a R200, 000 prize money while the Footballer of the Season accolade was worth R250, 000 before Betway became the new sponsor of the league.
It remains to be seen if award prizes will be increased.
Photo by Daniel Hlongwane/Gallo Images