The 2014-15 Barclays Premier League champions held their annual team awards ceremony on Tuesday evening to put a bow on a two-trophy season for Chelsea.
Oscar won the award for Goal of the Season for the second time in three seasons thanks to his wonderful strike against QPR on Nov. 1 in a 2-1 win for the Blues. It was one of 18 assists for the season from Cesc Fàbregas, who played Oscar in on the right side of goal from just outside the box. The Brazilian needed only one touch to punish Chelsea’s London rivals, unleashing a beautiful curler with the outside of his right boot that went across the face of keeper Rob Green and banged into the net off the inside of the post.
Kurt Zouma was named Young Player of the Year, with Didier Drogba presenting the award to the 20-year-old defender. Zouma, in his first season at Stamford Bridge, made 19 appearances for the club as both a central defender and a holding midfielder, performing excellently in whatever role he was asked to play by José Mourinho. The young Frenchman put in superb performances in January against Liverpool and Manchester City, using his dynamic athleticism to smother the likes of Raheem Sterling and Sergio Agüero in consecutive outings. He also put in a workmanlike outing against Tottenham in the Capital One Cup Final, effectively neutralizing Christian Eriksen as the Blues won their first trophy of the campaign.
“I want to say thank you to the fans, thank you for everything,” Zouma said, according to Chelsea’s official site. “You were there all season. I hope we will win more titles next season.”
Next up was the inaugural Academy Player of the Year, which was given to striker Dominic Solanke. Solanke was a force up front for the Blues, netting 41 goals on the season en route to FA Youth Cup and UEFA Youth League championships for Chelsea. He also made his debut with the CFC first-team when he came on in the Champions League group stage match against Maribor at Stamford Bridge.
On the ladies’ side, striker Eniola Aluko was named Chelsea Ladies Player of the Year. Aluko could not be in attendance due to the coming Women’s World Cup, but delivered a video message to the crowd and had the award accepted on her behalf by ladies manager Emma Hayes.
The Players’ Player of the Year and the Chelsea FC Player of the Year were up next, and the pair of honours was swept, unsurprisingly, by midfielder Eden Hazard. The Belgian winger has already collected an impressive batch of trophies for his performance this year, including the PFA, FWA and Premier League Player of the Year Awards, after having a hand in 30 total goals on the season (19 goals, 11 assists), including 23 in league play (14 goals, nine assists in the Premiership). The recognition from both his fellow teammates and the club caps off what was truly a special season for the 24-year-old Hazard.
“The season was fantastic, not only for me but for the team,” Hazard said. “We won two trophies and I got a lot of individual awards.
“I just want to say thank you to my teammates because they work for me. I think it’s a good choice! I voted for [César] Azpilicueta.
“We respect each other. We are good friends. Everybody likes each other and that’s why we won the league.”
Alongside Hazard, Diego Costa, Fàbregas, Nemanja Matić and John Terry were the other four finalists for the award.
The late Lord Attenborough was also honoured at the event, as he was given the Special Recognition Award, which was accepted on his behalf by his son, Michael.
