The Scotsman may not be involved in the Barclays Premier League any more but his retirement has undeniably prompted the most entertaining, unpredictable title race ever.
During the course of the season, officials and coaches from top clubs have all told me they see this as the best ever chance to win the Premier League title.
The consensus is that Manchester United may miss out this year but will be back to their traditional best under David Moyes (with one or two new recruits) by next season. So now, they say, is the time to take advantage.
Chelsea and Manchester City are also in slightly less-dramatic transitional phases as their new managers bed in, prompting the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool (as well as Spurs to a lesser extent) to see this as their best chance in years to land the trophy.
With that in mind, the stunning opening to Season 2013/14 has really impacted my choices when it comes to the best teams and players of the year 2013 as a whole.
My Team of the Year contenders, for instance, are Arsenal and Liverpool – two clubs enjoying a wonderful renaissance and both recent table-toppers, having been nowhere near the Manchester clubs last season.
Both have built on good work put in towards the end of season 2012/13, with Arsenal picking up an impressive 82 points in the year 2013, scoring 70 goals along the way and conceding just 34.
They also recorded 18 away wins in 27 games in all competitions to demonstrate a toughness we haven't seen from Wenger's sides in years. They get my vote as Team of the Year despite the fact they won nothing!
Liverpool scored more goals (84) than anyone in 2013 and have produced an open, attacking brand of football that has made any game they are involved in a must-watch. They also boast my Player of 2013.
While Gareth Bale and Robin van Persie led the way in 2012, Luis Suarez was never too far behind. I think we can all accept now that he only missed out on individual honours because of his disciplinary woes.
Since his 2013/14 season (belatedly) began, he made up for lost time. Despite a strong recent challenge from Sergio Aguero and Wayne Rooney, Suarez's numbers really are unassailable: 29 goals in a year which saw him miss large chunks of action, 19 so far this season, a record-breaking 10 in the month of December alone.
If Suarez stays fit, improves his goals tally in away games against the big teams and continues to stay out of trouble, he will threaten the record books come May 2014.
My other choices in terms of Players of the Year would be Loic Remy, who produced high quality for QPR and has been prolific for Newcastle, Dejan Lovren, Adam Lallana and Jay Rodriguez at Southampton, Eden Hazard, Aaron Ramsey (my Most Improved Player) and Seamus Coleman.
My Young Player of the Year, Romelu Lukaku, is the third-youngest player to get to 20 goals in a calendar year behind Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen.
Manchester United's David De Gea wins Best Goalkeeper because it recently occurred to me we have hardly mentioned him in our studio, while I lost count of the discussions we had last season about the young Spaniard's perceived weaknesses. He is growing stronger and becoming more dominant as each game passes.
Best Manager goes jointly to Brendan Rodgers and Roberto Martinez who have brought some progressive football thinking to Merseyside.
@antwowfisher
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