Things keep getting better for Jonathan David in 2019. Canada Soccer announced on Wednesday that David, who plays for Belgian club Gent, was named the Canadian men’s player of the year, finishing ahead of Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) and Scott Arfield (Glasgow Rangers) in voting by Canadian media and coaches. At 19, David is the second-youngest ever winner of the men’s award – Alphonso Davies was 18 when he claimed the honour for the first time last year. "Jonathan David is a great role model for young players because humility and talent is always a great combination," Canadian coach John Herdman said in a news release. "He’s always made himself available to represent his country and he has delivered with performances and goals. We are proud to have Jonathan David as one of our own and pleased his hard work has received recognition." A forward with speed and intelligent movement off the ball, David enjoyed a breakout 2019 by scoring eight goals in nine appearances for Canada. Six of those goals came at this summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup (a new team record) where he finished as the tournament's top scorer and was named to the Gold Cup all-star team. In total, David has 12 caps since making his debut for Canada in 2018, scoring 11 goals and adding five assists. It's only a matter of time before the Ottawa native eclipses Dwayne De Rosario as Canada's all-time leading scorer – De Rosario scored 22 goals in 81 appearances from 1998 to 2015. At the club level, David scored 20 goals and tallied 12 assists for Gent in the first 11 months of the year across all competitions, as he played a starring role in helping the Belgian side advance to the next round of the UEFA Europa League. According to Canada Soccer, David’s 28 goals for club and country in 2019 rank as the highest output by a Canadian player in a single year since 2000. In the last 20 years, only five other Canadians have scored 20 or more goals in a calendar year: Tomasz Radzinski (24 goals in 2000), Simeon Jackson (23 goals in 2009), Olivier Occean (20 goals in 2011), De Rosario (20 goals in 2011) and Cyle Larin (22 goals in 2015). The Canadian men’s player of the year award was first handed out in 1993, with the inaugural award going to Alex Bunbury. Other winners over the years have included De Rosario, Paul Stalteri, Jason de Vos, Craig Forrest, Atiba Hutchinson and Julian de Guzman. Earlier this week, Jayden Nelson and Olivia Smith won the Canadian Youth International Players of the Year honours. Canada Soccer will announce its women’s player of the year winner on Thursday.

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