Teemu Pukki and five other unlikely Premier League Player of the Month winners as Norwich striker picks up accolade for August
Teemu Pukki has been named the EA Sports Player of the Month for August and no player has been more deserving of the award.
The Norwich forward enjoyed a dream start to his Premier League career, becoming only the tenth player to score in his first three appearances, netting in the season opener at Liverpool before getting a hat-trick v Newcastle United as well as a goal and an assist against Chelsea.
The fact that the accolade has been scooped up from an unlikely source has been a breath of fresh air, with not many predicting the award to go to a player from one of the Premier League newcomers in the first month of the season.
The award is usually scooped up by players from the top six - and the likes of Sergio Aguero, Mohamed Salah and Kevin de Bruyne would have also been worthy winners in the past.
But in light of Pukki's achievement, marvelbet369.com has identified five other equally unlikely winners of the monthly accolade...
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Edu - Arsenal – February 2004
Now technical director of his former club, Edu picked up the award in the 2003/04 season when the Gunners went unbeaten – but he had to share the monthly honour with team-mate Dennis Bergkamp.
The Brazilian netted the winner as Arsenal came from behind to beat Claudio Ranieri’s Chelsea 2-1, moving them seven points clear at the top of the table.
And although it isn't out of the ordinary for an Arsenal player to win the award, when you think of some other stars who never won it, for example Patrick Vieira, it is still somewhat unusual he won the award.
Anton Ferdinand - West Ham – January 2006
Despite being the less successful of the two Ferdinand brothers, Anton has won the same number as his older sibling Rio. They are the only siblings to have won the award.
Ferdinand’s imperious performances at the back helped West Ham get two wins from three league games.
He also the scored in a 2-1 win over Fulham towards the end of the month – but ultimately the season ended in heartbreak when his penalty was saved in the FA Cup final as West Ham were defeated by Liverpool.
Johan Elmander - Bolton – November 2010
The Swede was rewarded for a superb run of form late in 2010 – and his boss Owen Coyle picked up the manager’s prize.
Bolton recorded three wins and two draws in November 2010, with former striker Elmander netted three goals for the Trotters to pick up the prize.
His goal against Wolves was sublime, with a fine piece of skill to turn away from three defenders before slotting home.
Tim Krul - Newcastle – November 2013
Newcastle won all four of their league games under Alan Pardew in November 2013 and Krul was the standout player, making a whopping 14 saves as the Magpies defeated Spurs and Chelsea.
Pardew's men went on to finish tenth that season, with Krul suffering from a few injuries to keep him sidelined for the remainder of the season.
The Dutchman is now back in the Premier League with Norwich.
Connor Wickham - Sunderland – April 2014
In April 2014, Sunderland picked up seven crucial points to retain their Premier League status and this was mainly due to the great form of Wickham.
Having suffered defeats to Tottenham and Everton, Wickham bagged a double in a 2-2 draw at Manchester City.
Three days later he got on the scoresheet as Sunderland famously beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, before his double the following week helped Sunderland see off Cardiff 4-0.
The Wearside club stayed up, finishing 14th, but Wickham's form didn't last with unsuccessful spells at Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds, before joining Crystal Palace in 2015.
