First half of the year Yaya last season not a midfielder playing better and who was more dangerous anywhere, second half of the year Kun who was as good as anyone in the world sept to nov
Overall though my bet would be on MDM, I didn't see anyone play better at the World Cup , he has brought Mangala on big time, he was playing a mile better than kompany at the end of last season and from feb to dec he has been superb in club and international football.
I think kompany and Mangala are better with him and I think in terms of the mental side of defending I have rarely seen better and he not messi was key to them making the finals, he marshalled a brilliant defensive performance by them
The only other player close for me was Saba for many of the same reasons I just think he was a little less influential than MDM particularly in the world cup.
All our others merlin, sammy, vinnie, yaya, etc have missed too many games, had bad patches etc and haven't had the longevity and where 12 month (11 for MDM) consistency