Jordan Henderson's aggression and intensity set him apart from the rest of the competition and he is a worthy winner of the Football Writers Player of the Year award, according to Damien Delaney.
After sealing Liverpool's first Premier League title midweek, Henderson picked up the individual accolade on Friday, however, there was much debate over whether the English midfielder deserved it.
While Henderson may not be the technical virtuoso that Kevin De Bruyne is for Manchester City, his contribution to Liverpool's success is unquestionable. When Henderson plays Liverpool are a different team, claimed Delaney.
"He sets the tone for Liverpool. He represents everything Liverpool are about, and the games that he's played Liverpool have been a different team."
"He does set the tempo for that team, he leads from the front."
Delaney acknowledged that unlike previous years there hasn't been one stand out player that has set the league alight, like Mo Salah or Eden Hazard in the past.
Despite all this Henderson "is a representative of the manager on the pitch," said Delaney. Liverpool's dominance in the Premier League makes it difficult to hand the award to a player outside of the club.
The former Crystal Palace defender shed some light on how the PFA player award is voted on. Delaney took his own vote seriously and usually opted in favour of a player that had performed particularly well against him throughout the year.
"The way I used to always look at it is, who played well against you? You go through all the teams you played against and you go who impressed you the most?"
Paul Pogba has taken his fair share of criticism in the public sphere throughout his Manchester United career. Delaney highlighted the dissonance between Pogba's portrayal by supporters and media and his fellow professionals.
"The year he got in the PFA Team of the Year it upset so many people because he was you know the trophy boy for the failed transfer policy that United had," Delaney said.
"When he got in the PFA Team of the Year that's the one thing that can't be fixed because that's voted for by the players"
"I played against him, I couldn't believe how good he was. I thought this guy is unbelievable."
While it is yet to be announced, it would be fair to assume that Henderson will make the PFA Team of the Year this season, for his enormous contribution to Liverpool.
Should he do so it would validate the Football Writers award he won on Friday even more.
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