Arsenal Dominate 2025/26 PFA Premier League Team of the Year With Five Selections
Five Arsenal players have been named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year for 2025/26, reflecting the Gunners’ first league title triumph in 22 years under manager Mikel Arteta.
Goalkeeper David Raya, right-back Jurrien Timber, centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes, and midfielder Declan Rice were all selected in the player-voted line-up, which recognises the standout performers across the division as chosen by fellow professionals. As reigning champions, Arsenal supplied more representatives than any other club in this year’s selection, with Manchester City providing the next-highest tally of four players.
Raya’s inclusion follows a standout season between the posts, in which he kept 19 clean sheets to secure his third consecutive Premier League Golden Glove, finishing four clear of his nearest rival in the process. Saliba’s selection marks his fourth consecutive appearance in the PFA Team of the Year, a run matched by few players in the award’s recent history, while Gabriel was recognised for the third year running after again anchoring what proved to be the league’s meanest defence, with Arsenal conceding only 27 goals across the season, the division’s best defensive record for a third consecutive year.
Timber earned his first-ever inclusion in the Team of the Year following a breakout campaign at right-back, in which he made 30 Premier League appearances and contributed two goals, including a decisive winner against Chelsea in March 2026. Rice completed Arsenal’s contingent after another commanding season in midfield, having played all but two of the club’s league matches. The England international was also named Arsenal’s Player of the Season for a second consecutive year, further underlining his influence on the team’s title-winning campaign.
The composition of the wider XI saw Arsenal’s back four combine with a midfield trio of Rice, Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki, and Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes, who was separately named the PFA Players’ Player of the Year. Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly, who also claimed the PFA Young Player of the Year award, completed the backline alongside the Arsenal quartet. Up front, the selection featured Brentford’s Igor Thiago alongside Manchester City pair Antoine Semenyo and Erling Haaland.
Arsenal’s defensive resilience throughout the campaign was central to their title success, with the club recording 19 clean sheets, four more than any other side in the division, and closing out their run-in with four consecutive shutouts. The club’s dominance of the PFA selection stands as further recognition of a campaign that ended a 22-year wait for the Premier League trophy.
The recognition arrives at a notable moment for Arsenal, as the club begins its title defence facing significant injury concerns. Timber remains unavailable because of a persistent groin problem, while Saliba is expected to be sidelined for a longer period due to a back injury, increasing the importance of new signing Ezri Konsa, who arrived from Aston Villa and could make his Arsenal debut against his former club on August 31.
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