Everyone has their favourites in football, the fans, the media and sometimes even the manager. For example, Steven Gerrard could probably score a hat-trick of own goals against Manchester United and the Kop would still find an excuse for his actions. As long as he pulls on the Red shirt for the rest of his career, he’s still the darling of Merseyside.

The media also tend to favour similar players for their supposed star quality. You tend to find the same individuals get the man of the match of award or constant praise week in, week out, see Andy Townsend awarding Frank Lampard player of the game during the draw against Ukraine despite the fact that the midfielder did almost nothing for 80 minutes of the game. Football is a fickle game though and the media’s favourites can change drastically (ask David Beckham what happened in 1998), but at this present time, we bring you 15 stars in football who are the darlings of the media.

Click on Joe Hart to unveil the 15 media darlings