Kante claims Premier League Player of the Season prize

Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante has been named the Premier League Player of the Season.

The 26-year-old has enjoyed a superb first year at Stamford Bridge and has already been awarded the PFA and Football Writers' Association prizes for his performances.

Kante won the most combined votes from a panel of experts, captains of Premier League clubs and a public ballot.

He beat fellow nominees Eden Hazard, Cesar Azpilicueta, Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Jan Vertonghen, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez to the prize.

"It's a huge honour to be named player of the year by such big names in football and I want to thank everyone who voted for me," Kante told the Premier League's official website.

"I work hard in training, I try to give my best and I work with so many very good players; that's why we won the league two times.

"We played many good games but we won 5-0 against Everton, which was a very beautiful game, and also my goal against Manchester United [in a 4-0 win]; it is always good to score and I am happy for these two games."

Kante was a key component of Leicester City's shock title win last season and has been a driving force behind Chelsea's triumph in 2016-17.

He is only the second player to claim back-to-back top-flight titles with different clubs in England, after Mark Schwarzer, who did so with Chelsea in 2014-15 and Leicester the following year.