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Juventus wonderkid Kenan Yildiz named Argentine maestro Lionel Messi and Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo as his sporting idols last year. The Turkish youngster claimed he was 'inspired' by the pair of 'champions', also naming a few other Juve legends as his sources of inspiration.
Yildiz moved to the Juventus academy from German giants Bayern Munich's youth side in 2022. He quickly made his way up through the ranks, making his senior debut midway through the 2023-24 campaign.
He featured regularly off the bench last season, bagging four goals and an assist in 32 appearances. This season, however, seems to be the breakout year for the 19-year-old.
Yildiz has been on song for the Bianconeri in 2024-25, with three goals and two assists in 12 appearances. He grabbed the headlines this week, coming off the bench and netting a brace to help Juventus come back from 4-2 down to draw 4-4 against Inter Milan in the Derby d'Italia (October 27).
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After scoring his first goal for the club in a 2-1 win over Frosinone in Serie A in December 2023, Yildiz was asked to name his footballing idols. Besides Messi and Ronaldo, the youngster also named Juve legends Zinedine Zidane and Alessandro Del Piero as players that he looked up to.
He said (via Juvefc.com h/t juventus.com):
"I am inspired by the great champions of the past, like Zidane and Del Piero who are my idols, as well as Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo."
Up next, Yildiz will likely be seen in action when Juventus take on Parma in their upcoming Serie A fixture on October 30.
Alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus' Kenan Yildiz is part of a select group of Champions League goalscorers
Juventus forward Kenan Yildiz is part of a small group of players who have scored the opening goal in a UEFA Champions League campaign. The young Turkish star shares the honour with a group of legends which also includes footballing megastars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Yildiz bagged the first goal of the 2024-25 UCL campaign in the Bianconeri's 3-1 win over Dutch side PSV Eindhoven. The 19-year-old unleashed a stunning curled effort which found the top-right corner in the 21st minute.
Messi achieved the feat in the 2018-19 season, against the same opposition as Yildiz. He struck an outstanding 25-yard freekick which curled into the side of the net in the 31st minute of a 4-0 win
On the other hand, Ronaldo has achieved the milestone twice in the past. In his first UCL game for Real Madrid (2009-10), a 5-2 win over Swiss side FC Zurich, he found the back of the net in the 27th minute with a sensational free-kick.
He repeated the feat while playing for Manchester United in the 2021-22 campaign, sweeping Bruno Fernandes' cross home against another Swiss side, BSC Young Boys (13'). However, his side fell to a disappointing 2-1 defeat.
