Another football season has come to an end. And in my opinion, the 24/25 season was perhaps the best football season in recent memory. From loads of insane matches and drama, to a team which looked unbeatable, this season had it all. In this awards ceremony, the fourth of its kind, we will be going through five different awards, All of which will be explained as we go into the list. All awards will have a list of between 10-30 finalists to go through before getting to the winner. Let’s get into it.
Casillas Award
The first award we’ll be giving out is the Casillas Award for best goalkeeper in 24/25. Named after Iker Casillas, for obvious reasons, this award is a special one we give out, to finally recognize the great goalkeepers in the sport who rarely get the recognition they deserve. We’ll have a 10-finalist list, the only one of the awards with such a short list, so let’s begin!
Previous Winners
2021: Gianluigi Donnarumma
2023: Marc-Andre ter Stegen
2024: Gregor Kobel
#10: Emiliano Martinez
Team: Aston Villa/Argentina
Age: 32
Trophies: None
Appearances: 53
Clean Sheets: 16
A mainstay in this list for the past few years, Emiliano Martinez had another top year in 24/25. The Argentinian led Aston Villa to Champions League quarterfinals, A European spot in the Premier League once again, and with few bad moments on the way there. Overall very solid season from Martinez.
#9: Wojciech Szczesny
Team: Barcelona/Poland
Age: 35
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 30
Clean Sheets: 14
One of the wildest stories of the season, Our #9 on this list was actually retired when the season began. After getting released by Juventus and not finding another club, Szczesny retired at the age of 34 in August 2024, to focus on his family again. However, life had other plans, as in late September 2024, Marc-Andre ter Stegen broke his leg after a fall against Villarreal, and not looking to rely on Inaki Pena all season, they signed Szczesny in October to fill the gap. He started playing in January, and he’s been great for Barca. 14 Clean Sheets in 30 matches, much better than Inaki Pena, and taking Barca to the domestic treble and 2 games from the Quadruple.
#8: Geronimo Rulli
Team: Marseille/Argentina
Age: 33
Trophies: None
Appearances: 34
Clean Sheets: 5
While his stats aren’t that impressive, Rulli had a massive campaign for Marseille this season. Nearly every game he’s made some big saves, lots of saves from inside the box, and was one of Ligue 1’s top goalkeepers of the season.
#7: Alisson
Team: Liverpool/Brazil
Age: 32
Trophies: Premier League
Appearances: 33
Clean Sheets: 13
A longtime mainstay on this list, Alisson had another good season for Liverpool. Despite missing a large part of the start of the season due to injury, the Brazilian still did very well in the time he played, being instrumental in Liverpool’s 20th Premier League title.
#6: Yann Sommer
Team: Inter/Switzerland
Age: 36
Trophies: None
Appearances: 53
Clean Sheets: 22
22 Clean sheets in one season is impressive enough as it is, but Yann Sommer has had some great performances this season in addition to the clean sheets. He kept 7 Champions League clean sheets, and only conceded twice in the leadup to the quarterfinal. His goalkeeping performances against Bayern and Barca also were one of the main reasons Inter made it to the final.
#5: David de Gea
Team: Fiorentina/Spain
Age: 34
Trophies: None
Appearances: 42
Clean Sheets: 11
In his first season back after missing a whole year as a free agent, David de Gea quietly had a great season. Nearly taking Fiorentina to the Conference League final and landing them JUST in a European spot ahead of Lazio and Milan. De Gea had some great performances, leading Fiorentina to a great season above expectations, and nearly beat Betis in the Conference League semifinals, the second leg of which De Gea’s 8 saves still somehow weren’t enough.
#4: Thibault Courtois
Team: Real Madrid/Belgium
Age: 33
Trophies: UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup
Appearances: 53
Clean Sheets: 17
Despite Real Madrid’s underwhelming season, it was still made clear that Thibault Courtois is the best goalkeeper in the world. Without the Belgian, Madrid would have done much worse than they ended up doing. While just 17 clean sheets in 53 matches isn’t what you’d hope from Madrid, A shaky defence all season meant Courtois did well to get even that. Overall, Courtois was one of the few bright lights in a bad Madrid season.
#3: Joan Garcia
Team: Espanyol/Spain (Now Barcelona)
Age: 24
Trophies: None
Appearances: 38
Clean Sheets: 8
#2: Mats Sels
Team: Nottingham Forest/Belgium
Age: 33
Trophies: None
Appearances: 42
Clean Sheets: 15
#1: Gianluigi Donnarumma
Team: PSG/Italy
Age: 26
Trophies: Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions, Champions League
Appearances: 47
Clean Sheets: 17
Mo Salah Award
The next award we have is the Mo Salah award, given to the player with the most outstanding breakthrough season. It’s named after Mohamed Salah, for his iconic breakthrough 17/18 season with Liverpool, in which he made the jump from good Serie A player and Chelsea reject to a true world star, and one of the best players of the recent Premier League era. This is always one of the hardest awards to rank, because rather than ranking players just off how good their seasons were, we’re ranking them based on their rise in 24/25.
Previous Winners
2021: Pedri
2023: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
2024: Lamine Yamal
#15: Jesus Rodruguez
Team: Real Betis/Spain (Now Como)
Age: 19
Position: LW
Trophies: 0
Appearances: 32
G/A: 5 (3,2)
#14: Mika Biereth
Team: Sturm Graz/Monaco/Denmark
Age: 22
Position: ST
Trophies: Austrian League
Appearances: 44
G/A: 36 (27, 9)
#13: Guiliano Simeone
Team: Atlético Madrid/Argentina
Age: 22
Position: ST
Trophies: None
Appearances: 50
G/A: 14 (5, 9)
#12: Marc Casado
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 21
Position: DM
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 36
G/A: 7 (1, 6)
#11: Hugo Ekitike
Team: Frankfurt/France
Age: 23
Position: ST
Trophies: None
Appearances: 48
G/A: 34 (22, 12)
#10: Inigo Martinez
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 34
Position: CB
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 46
G/A: 9 (3, 6)
#9: Nick Woltemade
Team: Stuttgart/Germany
Age: 23
Position: ST
Trophies: DFB Pokal
Appearances: 33
G/A: 20 (17, 3)
#8: Raul Asencio
Team: Real Madrid/Spain
Age: 22
Position: CB
Trophies: Intercontinental Cup
Appearances: 46
G/A: 2 (0, 2)
#7: Myles Lewis-Skelly
Team: Arsenal/England
Age: 18
Position: LB
Trophies: None
Appearances: 39
G/A: 3 (1, 2)
#6: Morgan Rogers
Team: Aston Villa/England
Age: 22
Position: AM
Trophies: None
Appearances: 54
G/A: 29 (14, 15)
#5: Omar Marmoush
Team: Frankfurt/Man City/Egypt
Age: 26
Position: ST
Appearances: 51
G/A: 45 (28, 17)
#4: Joan Garcia
Team: Espanyol/Spain (Now Barcelona)
Age: 24
Position: GK
Trophies: None
Appearances: 38
Clean Sheets: 8
#3: Dean Huijsen
Team: Bournemouth/Spain (Now Real Madrid)
Age: 20
Position: CB
Trophies: None
Appearances: 36
G/A: 5 (3, 2)
#2: Desire Doue
Team: PSG/France
Age: 19
Position: LW
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 61
G/A: 32 (16, 16)
#1: Raphinha
Team: Barcelona/Brazil
Age: 28
Position: LW
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 57
G/A: 59 (34, 25)
Bela Guttman Award
The next award is the Bela Guttman award, given out to the best manager of the year. Like the award before it, this award is difficult to rank because it’s given based not necessarily on how good the team was, but what impact the manager had on the team. It’s named after Bela Guttman, one of the best managers of all time who won the European Cup twice with Benfica.
Previous Winners
2021: Thomas Tuchel
2023: Pep Guardiola
2024: Xabi Alonso
#15: Eddie Howe
Team: Newcastle
Age: 47
Best Cup Finish: Won League Cup
League Finish: 5th (UCL)
#14: Ernesto Valverde
Team: Athletic Club
Age: 61
Best Cup Finish: Europa League Semifinals
League Finish: 4th (UCL)
#13: Kjell Knutsen
Team: Bodo/Glimt
Age: 56
Best Cup Finish: Europa League Semifinals
League Finish: 1st (UCL Quali)
#12: Oliver Glasner
Team: Crystal Palace
Age: 50
Best Cup Finish: Won FA Cup
League Finish: 12th
#11: Mikel Arteta
Team: Arsenal
Age: 43
Best Cup Finish: Champions League Semifinals
League Finish: 2nd (UCL)
#10: Vincenzo Italiano
Team: Bologna
Age: 47
Best Cup Finish: Won Coppa Italia
League Finish: 9th
#9: Ange Postcoglou
Team: Spurs (Now Unattached)
Age: 59
Best Cup Finish: Won Europa League
League Finish: 17th
#8: Nuno Espirito Santo
Team: Nottingham Forest
Age: 51
Best Cup Finish: FA Cup Semifinals
League Finish: 7th
#7: Manuel Pellegrini
Team: Real Betis
Age: 71
Best Cup Finish: Conference League Final
League Finish: 6th (UEL)
#6: Enzo Maresca
Team: Chelsea
Age: 45
Best Cup Finish: Won Conference League, Club World Cup
League Finish: 4th (UCL)
#5: Simone Inzaghi
Team: Inter (Now Al Hilal)
Age: 49
Best Cup Finish: Champions League Final
League Finish: 2nd (UCL)
#4: Antonio Conte
Team: Napoli
Age: 55
Best Cup Finish: Coppa Italia RO16
League Finish: 1st (UCL)
#3: Arne Slot
Team: Liverpool
Age: 46
Best Cup Finish: League Cup Final
League Finish: 1st (UCL)
#2: Hansi Flick
Team: Barcelona
Age: 60
Best Cup Finish: Won Copa del Rey, Supercopa
League Finish: 1st (UCL)
#1: Luis Enrique
Team: PSG
Age: 55
Best Cup Finish: Won Champions League, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
League Finish: 1st (UCL)
Di Stefano Award
Our penultimate award is the Di Stefano award, given to the best wonderkid of the year. It was named after Alfredo Di Stefano, one of football’s first wonderkids, who had incredible hype around him in the 1950s and was the subject of one of the first – and most controversial – transfer battles between Barcelona and Madrid for a young star. The award has undergone many different age caps over the years, starting at 22, changing to 19, and this year going up to 20 years and under, a good age which I believe will stay for the foreseeable future.
Previous Winners
2021: Erling Haaland
2023: Alejandro Balde
2024: Lamine Yamal
#15: Lucas Bergvall
Team: Spurs/Sweden
Age: 19
Position: CM
Trophies: Europa League
Appearances: 45
G/A: 5 (1, 4)
#14: Franco Mastantuono
Team: River Plate/Argentina (Now Real Madrid)
Age: 17
Position: AM
Trophies: None
Appearances: 55
G/A: 17 (10, 7)
#13: Tyler Dibling
Team: Southampton/England
Age: 19
Position: RW
Trophies: None
Appearances: 38
G/A: 7 (4, 3)
#12: Rodrigo Mora
Team: Porto/Portugal
Age: 18
Position: AM
Trophies: Nations League
Appearances: 35
G/A: 15 (11, 4)
#11: Estevao
Team: Palmeiras/Brazil (Now Chelsea)
Age: 18
Position: RW
Trophies: None
Appearances (Since 2025 Start): 22
G/A: 17 (12, 5)
#10: Ethan Nwaneri
Team: Arsenal/England
Age: 18
Position: AM
Trophies: None
Appearances: 37
G/A: 11 (9, 2)
#9: Leny Yoro
Team: Man Utd/France
Age: 19
Position: CB
Trophies: None
Appearances: 33
G/A: 2 (1, 1)
#8: Myles Lewis-Skelly
Team: Arsenal/England
Age: 18
Position: LB
Trophies: None
Appearances: 39
G/A: 3 (1, 2)
#7: Geovany Quenda
Team: Sporting/Portugal
Age: 18
Position: LW
Trophies: Nations League, Liga Portugal, Taca Portugal
Appearances: 54
G/A: 11 (3, 8)
#6: Kenan Yildiz
Team: Juventus/Turkey
Age: 20
Position: LW
Trophies: None
Appearances: 52
G/A: 21 (12, 9)
#5: Dean Huijsen
Team: Bournemouth/Spain (Now Real Madrid)
Age: 20
Position: CB
Trophies: None
Appearances: 36
G/A: 5 (3, 2)
#4: Pau Cubarsi
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 18
Position: CB
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 56
G/A: 5 (1, 4)
#3: Joao Neves
Team: PSG/Portugal
Age: 20
Position: CM
Trophies: Champions League, Nations League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 54
G/A: 17 (7, 10)
#2: Desire Doue
Team: PSG/France
Age: 19
Position: LW
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 61
G/A: 32 (16, 16)
#1: Lamine Yamal
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 17
Position: RW
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 55
G/A: 43 (18, 25)
Sheffield FC Award
This is the final award, the one you’ve all been waiting for. With a finalist list a whopping 30 names long, the Sheffield FC Award is the award given out to the best player of the season. It’s named after Sheffield FC, football’s oldest club.
Previous Winners
2021: Robert Lewandowski
2023: Lionel Messi
2024: Rodri
#30: Moises Caicedo
Team: Chelsea/Ecuador
Age: 23
Position: DM
Trophies: Club World Cup, Conference League
Appearances: 50
G/A: 8 (2, 6)
#29: Gianluigi Donnarumma
Team: PSG/Italy
Age: 26
Position: GK
Trophies: Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions, Champions League
Appearances: 47
Clean Sheets: 17
#28: Serhou Guirassy
Team: Dortmund/Guinea
Age: 29
Position: ST
Trophies: None
Appearances: 50
G/A: 47 (38, 9)
#27: Pau Cubarsi
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 18
Position: CB
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 56
G/A: 5 (1, 4)
#26: Willian Pacho
Team: PSG/Ecuador
Age: 23
Position: CB
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 57
G/A: 2 (0, 2)
#25: Julian Alvarez
Team: Atletico/Argentina
Age: 25
Position: ST
Trophies: None
Appearances: 57
G/A: 36 (29, 8)
#24: Cole Palmer
Team: Chelsea/England
Age: 23
Position: AM
Trophies: Club World Cup, Conference League
Appearances: 50
G/A: 32 (18, 14)
#23: Bradley Barcola
Team: PSG/France
Age: 22
Position: LW
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 64
G/A: 42 (21, 21)
#22: Vinicius Jr.
Team: Real Madrid/Brazil
Age: 24
Position: LW
Trophies: UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup
Appearances: 58
G/A: 41 (22, 19)
#21: Enzo Fernandez
Team: Chelsea/Argentina
Age: 24
Position: CM
Trophies: Club World Cup, Conference League
Appearances: 53
G/A: 26 (9, 17)
#20: Jules Kounde
Team: Barcelona/Chelsea
Age: 26
Position: RB
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 53
G/A: 12 (4, 8)
#19: Lautaro Martinez
Team: Inter/Argentina
Age: 27
Position: ST
Trophies: None
Appearances: 53
G/A: 31 (24, 9)
#18: Harry Kane
Team: Bayern/England
Age: 31
Position: ST
Trophies: Bundesliga
Appearances: 51
G/A: 55 (41, 14)
#17: Viktor Gyokeres
Team: Sporting/Sweden
Age: 27
Position: ST
Trophies: Liga Portugal, Taca de Portugal
Appearances: 52
G/A: 67 (54, 13)
#16: Joao Neves
Team: PSG/Portugal
Age: 20
Position: CM
Trophies: Champions League, Nations League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 54
G/A: 17 (7, 10)
#15: Michael Olise
Team: Bayern/France
Age: 23
Position: RW
Trophies: Bundesliga
Appearances: 55
G/A: 43 (20, 23)
#14: Scott McTominay
Team: Napoli/Scotland
Age: 28
Position: CM
Trophies: Serie A
Appearances: 36
G/A: 19 (13, 6)
#13: Robert Lewandowski
Team: Barcelona/Poland
Age: 37
Position: ST
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 52
G/A: 45 (42, 3)
#12: Desire Doue
Team: PSG/France
Age: 19
Position: LW
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 61
G/A: 32 (16, 16)
#11: Kylian Mbappe
Team: Real Madrid/France
Age: 26
Position: ST
Trophies: UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup
Appearances: 49
G/A: 49 (44, 5)
#10: Nuno Mendes
Team: PSG/Portugal
Age: 22
Position: LB
Trophies: Champions League, Nations League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 53
G/A: 12 (6, 6)
#9: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Team: PSG/Georgia
Age: 24
Position: LW
Trophies: Champions League, Serie A, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 51
G/A: 24 (13, 11)
#8: Fabian Ruiz
Team: PSG/Spain
Age: 29
Position: CM
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 60
G/A: 19 (8, 11)
#7: Achraf Hakimi
Team: PSG/Morocco
Age: 26
Position: RB
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 55
G/A: 27 (11, 16)
#6: Mo Salah
Team: Liverpool/Egypt
Age: 32
Position: RW
Trophies: Premier League
Appearances: 52
G/A: 57 (34, 23)
#5: Pedri
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 22
Position: CM
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 60
G/A: 14 (6, 8)
#4: Vitinha
Team: PSG, Portugal
Age: 25
Position: CM
Trophies: Champions League, Nations League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 59
G/A: 13 (8, 5)
#3: Raphinha
Team: Barcelona/Brazil
Age: 28
Position: LW
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 57
G/A: 59 (34, 25)
#2: Lamine Yamal
Team: Barcelona/Spain
Age: 17
Position: RW
Trophies: La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa
Appearances: 55
G/A: 43 (18, 25)
#1: Ousmane Dembele
Team: PSG/France
Age: 28
Position: RW
Trophies: Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions
Appearances: 53
G/A: 51 (35, 16)
Thank you for reading the 2025 Bob and Jim Awards. I made these back in July, during peak summer, byt never got it finished. I’m looking at bigger projects, so I’ll post this for now and promise more for the 2026 edition, I’ll hopefully be able to complete that one. For now, I’m Jim James, Merry Christmas, until next time.