Ousmane Dembele Claims Ligue 1 Player of the Year Award for Second Consecutive Time Despite Limited Starts in Nine Games

The 28-year-old winger has now joined an elite group as only the fifth player to secure consecutive Ligue 1 player of the year honours, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic being the most recent in 2014.

Dembele followed in the footsteps of Kylian Mbappe last season, after the Frenchman had dominated the award with five straight victories before his transfer to Real Madrid.

"This is an individual award, yet every personal accolade I have received stems from the support of this squad," Dembele commented.

Despite enduring a campaign hindered by multiple injuries, the forward managed to defend his title successfully.

He featured as a starter in merely nine Ligue 1 fixtures this term, accumulating 960 minutes on the field, a sharp decline from his 20 starts and 1,736 minutes the previous year.

Even with less playing time, Dembele contributed 10 goals and six assists, figures that are lower than his impressive 21 goals and eight assists from last season.

Paris Saint-Germain all but sealed yet another Ligue 1 championship on Sunday, following a narrow 1-0 victory against Brest that positioned them six points ahead of closest competitors Lens.

With only two matches left in the schedule, Luis Enrique's team also holds a better goal difference advantage.

PSG will formally be declared French champions for the fifth successive season, marking their 12th title in the past 14 years, provided they do not lose to second-placed Lens on the road this Wednesday.

In addition, PSG is gearing up for the Champions League final showdown with Arsenal later this month, having advanced past Bayern Munich via a thrilling 6-5 aggregate score in the semi-finals.

The best young player award was presented to Dembele's colleague Desire Doue, and Pierre Sage earned recognition as the top manager for transforming Lens into a formidable rival to PSG.