Riyad Mahrez for player of the year? Pat Nevin fields that one

Plus the ex-Chelsea and Everton winger talks Arsenal character and a weekend of double yellows on Off The Ball.

Pat Nevin thinks Riyad Mahrez is most deserving of winning individual awards at the end of this season as things stand.

The Algeria international has been highly influential as Leicester City have risen to the top of the Premier League, scoring the winner against Watford on Saturday, for a personal haul of 15 goals and 11 assists this season.

And ex-Chelsea and Everton winger, Pat, does not see any players rivalling Mahrez based on the 29 games so far this season.

"I'm struggling to see anyone that's jumping out. I mean Vardy obviously, he's had a good season [and] Harry Kane's coming off a good season as well. There are plenty you could start looking at, but nobody really for me jumping out," he said.  

As for a weekend with players getting needlessly sent off for double yellow cards (Milner, Mata, Coquelin and Mirallas), Pat believes James Milner and Francis Coquelin in particular "should know better" than to make unnecessary tackles when already booked.

This stat proves Riyad Mahrez is Premier League’s Most Valuable Player

Leicester City are still on track to claim the Premier League style in shocking fashion. The Foxes are leading the table after 29 matches, being five points clear of Tottenham.

There’s only one team that didn’t win the English top flight crown in that situation: Arsenal during the 2002/2003 season, meaning Leicester have a pretty good shot.

Jamie Vardy has hit the net 19 times for the Foxes, but the overall feeling is that Riyad Mahrez is their most valuable player. The Algerian has scored four goals less than his partner in crime, but he has also provided 11 assist, second in the league behind only Mesut Ozil.

However, let’s stick to the goals he has scored. There is not one player that has been a club’s match winner this season, as Mahrez has hit the goal that eventually made the difference on six occasions, according toTransfermarkt.

The 25-year-old hit the third goal in a 4-2 win against Sunderland, the second goal in a 2-1 win against West Ham, the first goal in a 3-0 win against Swansea, the second goal in a 2-1 win against Chelsea, the second goal in a 3-1 win against Manchester City and the only goal in a 1-0 win against Watford.

On top, he did it in four different ways: three left-footed shots, one right-footed shot, one header and one penalty.

Vardy and Stoke’s Marco Arnautovic have scored five goals that made the difference, while eight players have scored four, with among them Chelsea’s Diego Costa, City’s Sergio Aguero and Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud.