Former Bristol City defender Luke Ayling has won the PFA fans player of the year award after winning the Championship with Leeds United.
Ayling, now destined for the Premier League, is 'the one that got away' for many City fans, with the right-back excelling since leaving the Robins in 2016 and has been recognised for his stellar year at Elland Road.
He made 37 league appearances for Marcelo Bielsa's Whites this year as they stormed to the Championship title, scoring the only goal against Bristol City as the sides met at in Yorkshire in February.
He scored three more and assisted four as part of the best defence in the league, with Ayling being a regular alongside the likes of Liam Cooper and Ben White in the defence.
Ayling left Bristol City in 2016 after signing from Yeovil Town just two years earlier with a big reputation. He played 95 times for the Robins before leaving for just £200,000, a fee that will likely frustrate many a City fan due to what he has done since leaving.
Ayling has admitted that the writing was on the wall for his Ashton Gate departure upon Lee Johnson's arrival in 2016. While he was a constant in Steve Cotterill's side, he struggled to get regular minutes under Johnson and was sold to Leeds at the start of the 2016/17 season.
In an interview with the Athletic in June, Ayling said: "I had a good first season and played every game under Steve Cotterill but then I got injured, Cotts got the sack (in January 2016) and Lee Johnson came in," said Ayling.
"I knew pretty much from the off that things weren't going to go well - from things around the training ground and things (Johnson) said to me.
"I was out of the squad or I was on the bench, sometimes getting the last five minutes of games. I knew I had to move to get football. I just never expected it to be Leeds, to be honest.
"As it happened, I started the first game of the (2016/17) season I left and played well. Then, on the Tuesday, they said, 'Look, you're getting sold'."
He has made 154 appearances since his Leeds United move and established himself as one of the best right-backs in the Championship, with many City fans constantly bemoaning the decision to let him leave.
And those feelings will now be amplified with Ayling picking up the player of the year gong, beating Said Benrahma, Eberechi Eze, Matheus Pereira, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Ollie Watkins to the award.
