JOE’s team of the season – readers’ choices

Picking a team of the season is always tough, and you're bound to upset a few people along the way.

Our selection of the best XI so far actually got a compliment or two. But naturally not everyone was so forgiving. Here are some of the most popular choices from our readers.

Mesut Özil

Özil came close to making the cut, and there's no doubt he's been in fine form this season. With 11 assists from 12 games this season, perhaps we should have given him more credit.

Romelu Lukaku

He'd have been there if we'd gone with a front two, but Jamie Vardy was one of the first names on the teamsheet. Lukaku has excelled this season, and is starting to look like the player Chelsea thought they'd be getting when they signed him from Anderlecht all those years ago. Maybe Jose should have been more patient.

Philippe Coutinho

If Jurgen Klopp had been at Liverpool all season then we'd wager that Coutinho would be in this team. But Brendan Rodgers continues to wield his influence even after leaving Anfield, dragging the Brazilian down.

David de Gea

We didn't expect to see David de Gea on many Premier League team of the year selections...mostly because we thought he'd be at Real Madrid by now. The Spaniard has had no trouble slotting back into the Man United starting line-up, and certainly runs Jack Butland close for performances this season.

Danny Drinkwater

For all the praise coming the way of messrs Vardy and Mahrez, there's a sense that we've been overlooking some of Leicester's other star performers. Drinkwater is one of a number of former Manchester United players to have rebuilt his career in the East Midlands, along with the likes of Ritchie de Laet and Matty James, and some are suggesting an England call-up isn't far away.