Romelu Lukaku wins Premier League player of the month for March…as Andros Townsend scoops award for best goal
Bournemouth's Eddie Howe lands a gong, too, as manager of the month for pulling Cherries nine points clear of drop zone
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ROMELU LUKAKU has bagged the Premier League player of the month for March.
And Andros Towsend has picked up the award for goal of the month.
Lukaku scored four times in three games, becoming the first Everton player to hit the 20-goal mark in the Premier League era.
"I'm really happy," said Lukaku, who faces Liverpool at Saturday lunchtime in the Merseyside derby at Anfield.
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"It gives me another boost. I'm playing well at the minute and the team is doing really well."
A panel comprising experts, Premier League captains and supporters chose Lukaku from a six-man shortlist including Liverpool's Gini Wijnaldum, Crystal Palace's Mamadou Sakho and Nathan Redmond of Southampton.
Palace winger Townsend fended off competition from Fernando Llorente, Eden Hazard, Harry Kane, Robert Huth, Jesse Lingard, Alexis Sanchez and Oumar Niasse to claim his prize for his solo effort against West Bromwich.
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Looking back on his wonder goal, Townsend said: “I shrugged off Leko and Christian [Benteke] ran away so he left me the space, and even though I had nothing left I thought ‘I’m going to have to go for this.’
";It ended up as a two-v-two attack and thankfully I scored the goal.
"It’s definitely up there as one of the best in my career. I’ve been criticised that I’m a great scorer of goals, but not a great goalscorer.
"I’ve scored one for Spurs from a similar distance against Swansea, and a couple for England against Italy and Montenegro as well as another for Leyton Orient against Yeovil from a similar distance, so I’ve scored quite a few!”
Bournemouth's Josh King and Artur Boruc were the others to miss out on the playewr of the month award, but the club's fine form was recognised as Eddie Howe took the manager's award.
Howe oversaw a 1-1 draw at Manchester United and wins against West Ham and Swansea as the Cherries pulled nine points clear of the relegation places.