April has been a cruel month for several clubs. Arsenal’s title challenge has wobbled violently, Chelsea sacked their manager and two Premier League teams have seen relegation confirmed. But others have enjoyed the start of spring.
Manchester City have capitalized upon the Gunners’ stumbling form to reignite the race for top spot and been rewarded with several nominees across the monthly awards for players and managers. West Ham and Leeds United have also been singled out for recognition of their work at the opposite end of the table to rejuvenate the relegation battle.
There will be a pair of new winners in April as Mikel Arteta and Bruno Fernandes have both failed to defend the gongs they won in March.
April 2026 Premier League Player of the Month Nominees
- Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United)
- Rayan Cherki (Manchester City)
- Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest)
- Pascal Groß (Brighton & Hove Albion)
- Konstantinos Mavropanos (West Ham United)
- Noah Okafor (Leeds United)
- Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City)
- Alex Scott (Bournemouth)
No player has racked up more assists in April than West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen. The pilloried leader has shaken off the naysayers to tee up four goals in three games. Bowen’s first assist of the month set up the first of two goals Konstantinos Mavropanos has impressively mustered from center back, the same haul as Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah.
Fellow nominee Noah Okafor has racked up three goals in April to help Leeds pull almost entirely clear of the division’s trap door. Morgan Gibbs-White managed three in one game for Nottingham Forest against Burnley, single-handedly inspiring a remarkable turnaround which has also eased relegation fears at the City Ground.
That was no one-off from Gibbs-White. The England hopeful is the Premier League’s joint-top scorer across 2026. Brentford’s Igor Thiago is the only other player to hit double digits in this period.
Rayan Cherki’s qualities are both aesthetic and effective. Manchester City’s maverick seems to set about getting the game won as quickly as possible so he can spend the rest of contest bamboozling opponents. “When I have the ball, I want people to say: ‘How did he do that? How did he see it?’” Cherki reflected earlier this season. Mission accomplished.
Nico O’Reilly has drawn his own gasps throughout April while the south coast pairing of Pascal Groß and Alex Scott are two underrated midfield talents at opposite ends of their career both receiving belated recognition.
Past Winners
|
Player |
Club |
Month |
|---|---|---|
|
Jack Grealish |
Everton |
August |
|
Erling Haaland |
Man City |
September |
|
Bryan Mbeumo |
Man Utd |
October |
|
Igor Thiago |
Brentford |
November |
|
Dominic Calvert-Lewin |
Leeds |
December |
|
Igor Thiago |
Brentford |
January |
|
Antoine Semenyo |
Man City |
February |
|
Bruno Fernandes |
Man Utd |
March |
April 2026 Premier League Manager of the Month Nominees
- Nuno Espírito Santo (West Ham United)
- Daniel Farke (Leeds United)
- Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)
- Fabian Hürzeler (Brighton & Hove Albion)
- Andoni Iraola (Bournemouth)
- Vítor Pereira (Nottingham Forest)
- Arne Slot (Liverpool)
Almost half the league’s managers have been nominated for April’s prize—which should be rather more straightforward to decipher, at least by Pep Guardiola’s reckoning. “This is the easiest award,” the City boss once laughed. “Most points you do in a month is the Manager of the Month. So it’s simple.”
Guardiola tops that blunt metric for April, collecting nine points out of nine while also advancing to the FA Cup final. However, Arne Slot’s Liverpool also posted a perfect record, easing past Fulham and Crystal Palace on either side of a dramatic Merseyside derby victory at Everton’s new home.
Brighton ended March in 10th and raced up to top six over the last three games. Should they retain that position and Aston Villa finish fifth, Fabian Hürzeler would find himself in the Champions League next season. Andoni Iraola could also be at Europe’s top table next term—and Bournemouth could even be there as well with Marco Rose at the helm.
Daniel Farke, Vítor Pereira and Nuno Espírito Santo are all more concerned with simply preserving Premier League safety for their clubs. Leeds and Forest appear well placed but Nuno’s Hammers are still scrapping away with Tottenham Hotspur.
Past Winners
|
Manager |
Club |
Month |
|---|---|---|
|
Arne Slot |
Liverpool |
August |
|
Oliver Glasner |
Crystal Palace |
September |
|
Ruben Amorim |
Man Utd |
October |
|
Enzo Maresca |
Chelsea |
November |
|
Unai Emery |
Aston Villa |
December |
|
Michael Carrick |
Man Utd |
January |
|
Pep Guardiola |
Man City |
February |
|
Mikel Arteta |
Arsenal |
March |
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