Gerrard's dream December

Check out all four winners of the PFA Fans' Player of the Month for December.

Apart from defeat to Sao Paulo in the final of the Club World Championship, December was a magical month for Liverpool.

Five straight wins in the Premiership and a draw at Chelsea to secure top spot in their Champions League group was their reward for a fantastic team effort - with skipper Steven Gerrard, as usual, leading from the front.

A goal against Newcastle in the 2-0 win was sweet enough, but not half as tasty as his strike in the 3-1 Merseyside derby victory over Everton - at Goodison - on December 28. It was a cracking month for born-again striker Peter Crouch, but it was his England teammate Gerrard who received most of the votes...and the top award.

A former Fans' Player of the Year, Gerrard's leadership qualities continue to shine through and what a relief it must have been for Rafa Benitez and every Liverpool fan that their talismanic midfield general committed his future to the club.

The Liverpool boss has revealed how a heart-to-heart with Gerrard in the summer went some way towards persuading the England man to stay at Anfield. Benitez said: "We had a private talk about what Liverpool means to him and what he wanted. I asked him what he wanted and he said 'I want to win trophies with Liverpool' so I said we needed to analyse the situation and he decided to stay."

Gerrard certainly has no regrets about the decision he made, and his performances ever since have proved how much being skipper of his beloved Reds means to him: "I always knew what I had and what I would be leaving behind if the move did go through," he explains. "When it came to the crunch though I couldn't let go.

"Sometimes in football you can take what you've got for granted until you are put in a situation like I was put in. I didn't realise how hard I have worked to get to where I am and it took some of my family to remind me of that, to make me realise how proud I am to be here."

In the Championship, Stoke's Guinea international Sambegou Bangoura has made a big impression at the Britannia Stadium - so much so that manager Johan Boskamp has desperately been trying to delay the free-scoring striker's departure to the African Nations Cup.

The 23-year-old summer signing from Standard Liege has been a regular scorer since his move to the Potteries where he is already a cult hero. Manager Boskamp is a big admirer too.

"The most important thing is he scores," Boskamp said. "When people can score you can play easier. In our team, not so many people can score. He doesn't need a lot of chances. If you give him space, he scores. He's scored goals in every team he's played for. I'm not totally surprised he's also doing it here."

Colchester striker Chris Iwelumo's three goals during December, especially his winner in the second round of the FA Cup at Shrewsbury, secured him plenty of votes and the overall award of Fans' Player of the Month in League One.

The U's are pushing strongly for promotion and after their third round defeat of Sheffield United, they have been rewarded with a home tie in the next round against another Championship side, Derby. Iwelumo is the club's top scorer this season, with 13 in all competitions. The way Colchester are going, there should be more to come.

The 26-year-old, who joined the club in the summer from German Second Division side Alemannia Aachen, said at the time of his move: "The club's ambition is what sold the move. The manager and the players are heading in the same direction so I'm looking forward to it. It's good to know the manager wants you and I'll perform on the pitch." He's certainly done that.

The player of the month award in League Two goes to Boston United skipper Paul Ellender who is now in his fifth season at York Street after joining from Scarborough. Whilst ambitious Boston have brought in some more famous names this season, the consistency of central defender Ellender has not gone unnoticed.