CHN End of the Season Awards: MVP

Well, that was a fun season.

After going into the season with the hope of just simply staying alive, nobody expected Newcastle to pull off a top 10 finish. Yet, here we are, in the top 10 thanks to the brilliance of Rafa and the resiliency of his players. It truly was a wonderful season and deserves a ton of celebration.

Our staff here at CHN, felt it was only right to take a look at this season as a whole and hand out some awards. We of course would love your input as fans and every single award we give out, so, you the fans also have the opportunity to vote on every single award we give out .

The first award is this season’s MVP. This simply is the player this team depended on the most, and in your opinion was the best player this season. Our staff’s thoughts are below, be sure to vote and join in on the discussion in the comment section.

Bryan Nelson - Jamaal Lascelles

I struggle with picking individual greatness. But once again, Jamaal Lascelles has just signed. He was crucial to our success at the beginning of the campaign. If it weren’t for him, the club would not have gotten off to the hot start it did, and likely would have found itself struggling towards the bottom of the table later on in the season. Hot starts matter, and Lascelles provided that. Coupled with his fantastic ability to find scoring opportunities, and jump back as a defender, he’s becoming more of a complete player. It’s something this club hasn’t seen in a long while.

Elijah Newsome - Jamaal Lascelles

Jamaal Lascelles is my MVP, and simply because when I think of the term “Most Valuable Player”, I think about what it truly means. If someone is truly a team’s most valuable player, than that team must get way worse without that player. That is why I think LeBron should be the NBA MVP every season and that is why I have picked Jamaal Lascelles to be the MVP for Newcastle. Newcastle were dreadful without him and this tweet sums it up.

Need I mention the clutch goals he had in the beginning of the season?

Brad Mitchell - Jamaal Lascelles

It’s crazy that he technically started the season on the bench, and I was mostly happy with that. After his rocky end to the last season - albeit a time he played through injury - it seemed right he had to play his way back into the XI. Since he replaced Lejeune that first match he’s been an absolute rock. The biggest evidence for how important he’s been to us is that he missed five matches during our horrible run in November and December. Pre and post-injury we played like a team fighting for Europa League, he was a huge part of that. On top of that, he’s a great leader who’s bought into Rafa as a coach and tactician. If Newcastle were a normal club he’d be our captain for the next decade.

David Hatch - Florian Lejeune

Newcastle only found its form following Lejeune’s re-insertion into the starting XI for a home victory against Manchester United, and for Newcastle’s three most important results (wins against United, Leicester and Chelsea), Lejeune was the best player on the pitch. Lejeune, who isn’t afraid of going after a tackle or interception, is not only the perfect center back to pair with Lascelles, who prefers to play something more akin to sweeper, but has also shown the ability to lead the counterattack with the ball at his feet, completing more dribbles per match than Shelvey. This combination of skills was vital in Rafa executing his counterattacking style of football, which led to the victories over more talented teams that secured not only safety but a top half finish.

Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images

Cameron Johnson - Jamaal Lascelles

Not just because he won us multiple games with headed goals and led by example, but because he makes me confident in the team. I don’t think that we will get relegated as long as we have Rafa Benitez and Jamaal Lascelles, regardless of who else we sign in the transfer window. They are too organized to fail. Lascelles makes it so that Newcastle is competitive in most every game.

Dominic Kearns - Jamaal Lascelles

There are several deserving candidates, but Jamaal gets my vote because he was the most consistent player for Rafa this season. He was a rock at the back, and scored a couple key headers to pick up early season wins.

Lascelles personifies the “Most Valuable” in MVP because the team went through its worst stretch when he was sidelined with injury. Because of him, the defense had its best top-flight season since 2007.

Mirza Usman Baig - Jamaal Lascelles/Mo Diame

This award comes down to two players for me: Jamaal Lascelles and Mohamed Diame. Jamaal Lascelles ultimately takes the award home. Every time that he steps on the field, Newcastle has a real chance of getting a clean sheet—regardless of opponent. Our defensive record has been incredible in large part thanks to Jamaal, and he has even come up big with some vital goals. Mohamed Diame deserves an honorable mention for his incredible transformation. His tireless work in the engine-room has allowed Jonjo Shelvey to play quarterback going forward, and we all know how important that is to our attack. It’s also worth mentioning that Diame has kept Mikel Merino out of the team without upsetting fans.

Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Surprisingly, nobody on our staff picked Jonjo Shelvey, a man that a lot of fans on NUFC twitter are crowning as their MVP. Who do you think is Newcastle’s season MVP? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section!