GOAL's alternative Premier League awards: From Rookie of the Year and the Funniest Moment to Best Dressed Manager and Worst Refereeing Decision

There were quite a few candidates for our first award, with Everton's last-gasp 2-2 draw against Liverpool in Goodison Park's final Merseyside derby still fondly lingering in the imagination. Instead, we've gone with Arsenal's 5-1 hammering of Manchester City that had just about everything you want from a fierce Premier League encounter.

After competing for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 titles, it's become very obvious that Arsenal and City do not like each other on any sort of level. When the Cityzens snatched a point off the Gunners in September's 2-2 draw, Erling Haaland's taunt to Mikel Arteta that he should 'stay humble' was the extra bit of edge this new-age rivalry needed. They are also words that came back to haunt the Norwegian.

The reigning champions were torn limb from limb at the Emirates Stadium. Teenage sensation Myles Lewis-Skelly, who was also picked on by Haaland in the reverse fixture, got his own back by copying the striker's zen celebration, while 'Humble' by Kendrick Lamar sounded out over the PA at full-time. Petty? Of course. But does football need this sort of bite? Absolutely.

Unfortunately for Cityzens fans, this is not an article that will make for pleasant reading. Pep Guardiola and his troops also dishonourably and infamously contributed to one of the worst games of football played anywhere on this planet.

Manchester City's 0-0 draw at neighbours Manchester Unitedmust be scrubbed from history. It sent the footballing world into a collective state of irrational mourning for what the game used to be. Fortunately for us, the last two months of this sport have been superb entertainment and we have all done a lot to forget the disgrace of Old Trafford.

Hands up, who had Nottingham Forest fighting for a Champions League spot heading into the final day of the season? Who had them sitting in the top three for much of the campaign?

Even the most passionate of Forest fans will admit they did not see their 2024-25 fortunes coming. They have become the first team in Premier League history to double their points tally from one season to the next and, regardless of what happens against Chelsea on Sunday, they will be returning to European competition next year. Kudos to Nuno Espirito Santo for navigating his way through the City Ground chaos.

There were many doubts outside of Manchester United heading into this season given their haphazard decision not to sack Erik ten Hag over the summer and instead back him with another £200m worth of signings. It really shouldn't have shocked the Red Devils that they got off to such a poor start they were left with no option but to belatedly remove the Dutchman from his post.

The expectation, both internally and externally, was that Ruben Amorim would vastly improve fortunes after arriving from Sporting CP, particularly after caretaker boss Ruud van Nistelrooy had steadied the ship. Somehow, United got even worse and are averaging less than a point a game under the Portuguese coach.

The real kicker, besides still having the chance to finish 17th (seventeenth, for crying out loud), is that United missed their golden opportunity to salvage the campaign with a trophy and an unlikely place in next season's Champions League, losing to Tottenham in Wednesday's Europa League final. Whatever happened to 'lads, it's Tottenham'?

This was initially going to be an award for one single strip, yet given how gorgeous all three of Ipswich Town's kits are, we had to make an allowance. The Tractor Boys didn't manage to survive their first Premier League season since 2002, but at least they looked fabulous while tumbling down the table.

That classic look and feel of the blue home shirt, featuring a pinstripes and a shield behind the badge. That royal feel of the deep red away kit. That vibrance and detailing on the pink third strip. Phwoar!

Sorry, but there's just absolutely no way a centre-back should be able to play the way Micky van de Ven does. Pinching the ball midway inside his own half, sprinting to the other byline and laying on a perfect cutback for Brennan Johnson to tap in? Ludicrous.

Our winner here is Van de Ven against Manchester United back in September. Have as many more watches of it as your heart desires here...

On the second week of the season, Chelsea made the trip up to Wolverhampton to take on Wolves, staying overnight in the city before the game. Noni Madueke was not a fan and labelled the town as 'sh*t' on Instagram, much to the fury of the natives.

The next day, Madueke scored a hat-trick as the Blues ran out 6-2 winners, after which he apologised to the locals: "I just want to apologise to everyone that I might have offended. It is just a human mistake, an accident. It wasn't meant to be out on my socials like that. I'm sure Wolverhampton is a nice town and I'm sorry. In terms of the boos I expected it but it is part of the game. You have to be able to play under that sort of pressure."

Not only has Unai Emery made Aston Villa a competitive team, but they have some real style to go with their substance, too. They are ruthless with their aggression and are a team designed to make chances for fun, even if that means giving a fair few up at the other end.

When at Villa Park, Emery's side are relentless to the point of breathlessness. They run the hard yards for one another and the camaraderie that's developed in the second city over the last three seasons has been admirable.

They came so close to securing one hell of a comeback against eventual finalists Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. Even getting to within inches of such a feat was enough evidence of this Villa team's unique and currently unparalleled watchability.

Let's establish some criteria first. The Premier League and PFA's Young Player of the Year awards are ludicrously lenient, with relatively seasoned pros allowed to claim those honours.

What needs to happen is the relevant authorities introduce new limits - only players under the age of 20 when the season starts and have played fewer than 500 minutes of Premier League football (or top-five league equivalent) should be eligible. In this case, Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly would take home Rookie of the Year having not made his debut until September 2024, while he had never even played at left-back until being forced to fill in there amid the Gunners' injury crisis this season. The kid is special.

Raul Jimenez was once one of the Premier League's best centre-forwards, scoring 44 times in all competitions with Wolves from 2019 to 2021. Then his career was curtailed by a fractured skull suffered in a game against Arsenal, and the Mexican No.9 didn't quite look the same again even after making a full recovery.

That is until this season, however. After a fairly middle-of-the-road first season at Fulham last year, Jimenez has now wrestled the starter's spot from promising young marksman Rodrigo Muniz and recorded his second-highest return of league goals since moving to Europe, boasting a tally of 12 with one match to go.

There's only one possible contender for this award, and it's the bloke who's done such an amazing job that he's been nominated for the real-life Premier League Manager of the Year gong. Mr Vitor Pereira of Wolves, you have inspired a nation of pint-drinkers and you deserve many more of them, good sir.

Wolves were mired in 19th place when the enigmatic Portuguese was appointed, and they had just been beaten by relegation rivals Ipswich. Off the pitch, star player Matheus Cunha was heavily linked with a January exit and it seemed as though the club's seven-year stay in the top-flight was coming to an end. Fast-forward to May and Wolves are likely to finish above Manchester United and Tottenham. How about that?

This one goes out to the only gaffer who even bothered to put in any effort this year. You win, Pep Guardiola, you win. Not a trophy this season, but a more prestigious honour than the Community Shield, eh?

Brentford have done it again. Every year, they seem to lose a key cog in their system, yet still find a way to soldier on and improve. Last summer, Ivan Toney was sold for £40m to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli, and somehow they have become a more potent attacking force.

That has largely been down to the deadly duo of Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, two modern-day Barclaysmen who both have a nose for goals. Together, they have scored 38 times in the Premier League this season, accounting for 58.5% of the Bees' goals.

There is a common suspicion that Mbeumo will depart Brentford this summer amid interest from the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool, but Wissa could stay at the Gtech Community Stadium.

There have been few Premier League constants as memorable as Goodison Park, Everton's famous old ground full of character and colour. It is almost the definitive traditional football stadium.

Sunday's farewell to the Grand Old Lady was poignant, boisterous and emotional. The Premier League won't be the same without it, but at least Toffees fans will still have the chance to venture there to support the women's team as they prepare to move in from Walton Hall Park.

Sticking with Goodison Park, have a look at how mental the Everton faithful go after James Tarkowski's equaliser in added time against rivals Liverpool that we mentioned earlier:

Listen, Arsenal fans will come in here moaning they have been uprooted by the PGMOL cartel (or something like that), but the truth is they weren't on the end of the season's most egregious refereeing decision.

That honour/dishonour goes to Brentford and Yehor Yarmolyuk after the Ukrainian's head was nearly taken clean off by the very, very deliberate elbow of Brighton & Hove Albion's Joao Pedro. Both referee Andy Madley and VAR Chris Kavanagh decided this was not violent conduct worthy of a red card. Must be some threshold to be cleared for a dismissal, then...

Ruben Amorim going into his Manchester United press conferences every three days and claiming he and his players are total failures somehow didn't galvanise his squad on their way to a record-low Premier League finish. Colour us surprised.

The best of an infamous bunch came in January after losing to Brighton, with the Red Devils boss proclaiming: "We are the worst team maybe in the history of Manchester United. I know you want headlines but I am saying that because we have to acknowledge that and to change that. Here you go: your headlines.

"In 10 games in Premier League, we won three. I know that, imagine what this is for a fan of Manchester United, imagine what this is for me. We are getting a new coach who is losing more than the last coach. I have full knowledge of that. I am not going to change, no matter what. I know we can succeed but we need to survive this moment. I am not naive. We need to survive now."

To round off this fake ceremony, it's time for our own version of those 'lifetime achievement' awards you see handed out to people or groups who have sacrificed an awful lot for the sake of their careers. This one goes out to the long-suffering fans of Newcastle United and Crystal Palace, who won this year's domestic cups and ended generations of hurt, creating memories to last a lifetime.

That's what football is all about, as best put by Eagles boss Oliver Glasner: "When I talk about winning a trophy, it’s not the biggest achievement. It’s the happiness that we can give to our fans. Fans are never a cloud. When I talk about the fans, I’m always talking about every single one. When I’m talking about the team, I’m talking about everyone, every single one who’s involved.

"When I’m talking about memories, emotions - I get goosebumps when I talk about it because this is what stays forever. Everyone single fan has their own story, whatever it is. Some are sad, some are very positive. But every single one, behind every single fan, stands their own story.

"What is for sure is that every single person was proud to be a Palace fan on Saturday. Every single one enjoyed the journey and then this huge success. For a few hours, minutes, depending on the person, they forget all of the stuff going on in their lives. This is why football is the number one sport in the world. It was a best practice example of how it can be and how it should be."