Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw and Yui Hasegawa have been named on the six-player shortlist for the 2025/26 PFA Players’ Player of the Year award. Voted for by fellow professionals, it is one of the game’s most respected individual honours, and both Manchester City players have strong claims after outstanding seasons in a title-winning campaign, according to the club’s official website.
Shaw has already picked up major individual recognition this year, while Hasegawa’s all-round control in midfield has again made her one of the WSL’s most influential players. The winner will be announced at the PFA awards on Tuesday 25 August.
Bunny Shaw: A record-breaking season
Shaw scored 21 goals in 22 WSL matches and claimed the Golden Boot for a record third successive season, with four assists on top of that. As She Kicks noted when covering her latest scoring honour, her numbers have been relentless again – and this season she also reached 100 WSL goal contributions, becoming only the sixth player to do so.
There were more milestones too. Shaw became the first player in Manchester City’s professional history to hit 100 goals, doing so when she struck the first of four against Aston Villa in December, and she has already been recognised with the FWA Footballer of the Year award after previously winning this PFA prize in 2023/24, as noted by the PFA.
Yui Hasegawa: The engine of City’s title win
Hasegawa is on this shortlist for the third successive season, which tells its own story about her consistency. She ranked second in the WSL for passes into the final third, was joint-fourth for big chances created and still finished the campaign with the second-highest number of interceptions.
That balance between control and creativity has been central to City’s success, and She Kicks’ recent ratings piece from City’s win over Brighton underlined just how often both Hasegawa and Shaw set the tone in the biggest moments of the run-in.
PFA Players’ Player of the Year: The shortlist in full
The award carries extra weight because it is decided by fellow players rather than a public vote or media panel. Alongside Shaw and Hasegawa, the shortlist also includes Alessia Russo, Kirsty Hanson, Lauren James and Jess Park, although other end-of-season honours across the women’s game have also kept plenty of WSL stars in the spotlight.
Manchester City said, in a short statement on the club website: “Everyone at City would like to congratulate Bunny and Yui for making the PFA Players’ Player of the Year shortlist.”
