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Riyad Mahrez, Claudio Ranieri, Dele Alli win Soccer Saturday pundits' awards

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Who provided the best players, goals and moments from the 2015/16 Premier League season?

The Soccer Saturday panel - Matt Le Tissier, Paul Merson, Phil Thompson and Charlie Nicholas - have followed the campaign each week, so we asked them to dish out some season awards.

Here's who the panel rate as the biggest stars of the season and their most sensational moments both on the pitch and in the studio...

PLAYER OF THE SEASON

Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez wins the PFA Player of the Year award
Image: Riyad Mahrez won the PFA Player of the Year award

Charlie votes: I'm going with Riyad Mahrez because of his priceless ability to win games with moments of sheer brilliance.

Jamie Vardy's goals have obviously been important but when you consider all but four of Mahrez's 17 goals have come away from home he's really delivered when his team need him.

Thommo votes: I'm going for Jamie Vardy. I'm glad he won the Football Writers' Award because both he and Mahrez deserve recognition for their contributions to the most remarkable of achievements.

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Le Tiss votes: I've actually gone for a man who didn't even make the PFA shortlist in Toby Alderweireld. He was the most important factor in turning Tottenham from a side which have always struggled defensively in the past to having the best in the league until their final-day collapse.

Merse votes: It's got to be Riyad Mahrez. There are a few other contenders but Mahrez made things happen for Leicester this season at crucial times.

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE SEASON

Tottenham's Dele Alli celebrates after scoring against Stoke
Image: Dele Alli reached double figures in both goals and assists

Charlie votes: It obviously pains me to say it, but I've got to pick Dele Alli. To make the impact he has at such a young age, coming up from League 1, is remarkable. Spurs' results since he's been banned, which have pained me less, show just how important he is to them.

Thommo votes: It has to be Dele Alli for me. Harry Kane could come into it but Alli is the newcomer and he deserves recognition for making the step up.

Le Tiss votes: I'm going for Harry Kane. Alli runs him pretty close but Kane's goals have made Tottenham into title contenders, for much of the season anyway.

Merse votes: It's Dele Alli for me. He has been outstanding, he has looked like a top player in his first season in the Premier League. He came up from League 1, which is difficult, but he settled quicker than snow. 

MANAGER OF THE SEASON

Claudio Ranieri poses with the Premier League Trophy
Image: Claudio Ranieri is crowned as the pundits' manager of the season

Charlie votes: It can't be anyone other than Claudio Ranieri. The Godfather, the Tinkerman, the Thinkerman!

Charlie's tip
Charlie's tip

Find Charlie's 110/1 Europa League final tip here.

Thommo votes: No brainer, Claudio Ranieri. He's motivated the team to the very end and taken the pressure off the players with the way he's handled press conferences. 

Le Tiss votes: It can't be anyone other than Claudio Ranieri. Yes, there have been a few that have done very well but nothing compares to what he's done. Honourable mentions go to Mauricio Pochettino, Slaven Bilic and Ronald Koeman and maybe even Quique Sanchez Flores.

Merse votes: Nobody else but Claudio Ranieri in the Premier League. Otherwise I'd go with Accrington Stanley manager John Coleman. With the wage bill they have got, to just miss out on automatic promotion is a phenomenal achievement. It's not Premier League but what he has done on a tiny budget is near on a miracle.

SIGNING OF THE SEASON

Dimitri Payet of West Ham celebrates scoring his team's second goal against Crystal Palace
Image: Dimitri Payet has scored nine goals in his debut Premier League season

Charlie votes: I'd say Dimitri Payet has to get that. There have been a few other really good ones, including N'Golo Kante. Obviously, I'm more attack minded and there's something sensational about a player that can do what he does. He's made West Ham believe again.

Thommo votes: It's Dimitri Payet without a doubt. He's transformed West Ham. N'Golo Kante would be in there but I think Payet has just been incredible. The modern version of Paolo Di Canio but without the histrionics.

Le Tiss votes: N'Golo Kante gets it from me. A very shrewd bit of work and Leicester have obviously got some excellent scouting in place given most of us hadn't heard of him.

Merse votes: For me, Dimitri Payet and N'Golo Kante can share it. West Ham took a chance on Payet, who was 29. I like what David Sullivan said the other day; they have to buy people for now and they can't buy a load of kids and have two or three seasons. Kante has had a brilliant season at Leicester, one of their best players.

GOAL OF THE SEASON

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Dele Alli produced a sublime piece of skill against Crystal Palace and Phil Thompson says it will be goal of the season

Charlie votes: There has been a lot of good ones. I loved Jamie Vardy's against Liverpool but I'll go with Dele Alli against Crystal Palace, even though it pains me. It was like one of those Dennis Bergkamp moments where you think very few people can do that.

Thommo votes: I am also voting for Dele Alli. What people have got to remember is the build-up, going from one side of the pitch to the other, a bit of head tennis and then the technique! It's the sort of thing you'd expect to try on the training ground, and I mean try. It was a team goal as well as as a great bit of skill.

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Watch the Soccer Saturday panel's reaction to Dele Alli's wondergoal in Tottenham's 2-1 win over Crystal Palace

Le Tiss votes: I'm going to be accused of bias here but I'm going for Cuco Martina's strike for Southampton against Arsenal. From 30 yards out he curled it into the bottom corner first time with the outside of the boot. He'll never hit one like that again in his life.

Merse votes: I'll pick Dimitri Payet's free-kick against Crystal Palace. It looked like it was going to hit my car and then it dips into the top corner.

MOMENT OF THE SEASON

Wes Morgan
Image: Wes Morgan secures a point for Leicester at Old Trafford

Charlie votes: Wes Morgan's goal at Manchester United, where we all really thought they were going to do it. I thought that was it, coming from behind at Old Trafford with the captain showing the character of that side. I took longer than most to be convinced that they would win the title but that was the moment I realised it was really happening.

Thommo votes: Well, my favourite moment has to be Liverpool's comeback from 2-0 and then 3-1 down against Dortmund. I just thought it was sensational, against such a great side, the greatest ever game played at Anfield! In the Premier League, it would be Robert Huth's winner against Tottenham. If anything showed that Leicester could win the title, it was that.

Le Tiss votes: The Southampton comeback from 2-0 down against Liverpool. It's a very sore point as I was watching Kung-Fu Panda III at the cinema as I'd promised to take my daughter and then the game was rearranged. The film wasn't great, but it was certainly made better by the Sky Sports Score Centre

Merse votes: This is a tricky one but I'm going for Jamie Vardy's goal against Liverpool. I have seen those kind of goals before but it was a really big goal scored against Liverpool and it sticks in your head from the season.

Soccer Saturday highlight

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We take a look back at the best moments from Soccer Saturday this season

Charlie votes: I've not had many because I'm always moaning about Arsenal. Jeff never really wound me up about Spurs like he usually did and he kind of eased off on me, which almost made it worse.

Reflecting on it, I'd probably say the way Jeff ridiculed me and Merse for refusing to admit Leicester were going to win the league and predicting the slip-ups which never happened. He just let us dig ourselves into bigger and bigger holes and reminded us on air the next week.

Thommo votes: It has to be Merse talking about players getting their hair done when they're live on TV. They always look like they've got their hair done to me so I'm not really sure what his point was. The the next day, Jack Wilshere came back from injury for Arsenal and looked like he'd just came straight out of the hairdressers.

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Paul Merson went on a brilliant rant about why he believes Swansea are in with a chance against Leicester on Sunday

Le Tiss votes: I think this would have to go down as Merse's rant about Swansea players getting their hair done ahead of their televised game with Leicester. I completely disagreed because he thought Swansea were actually going to get a result, so he got a bit a of stick on the texts when Swansea conceded their fourth. 

Merse votes: We were filming this documentary on these two teams in a small island who play each other 38 times a season or something because there's nobody else to play. They actually do a cup draw to decide who plays at home even though they share the same pitch!

Anyway, there's quite a few people there, but it turns out they're not interested in the game, they're all bird watchers. Then this rare bird flies past and they all go berserk for it and then, just as it goes out of shot, the camera pans back to Jeff and he says "and the cat got the bird". We were all in stitches because Jeff usually finds the right words in such moments but it really wasn't. 

Pundits' Sky Bet tips
Pundits' Sky Bet tips

Find out what the pundits are tipping up for the Europa League final here.

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