Ranking the 10 most valuable Golden Boy 2021 nominees

The Golden Boy award is bestowed on the best under-21 player in a European top-flight league in a calendar year.

The award, a brainchild of Italian newspaper Tuttosport, was first awarded in 2003. Now, 12 prominent European newspapers nominate five nominees apiece for the prestigious award. Ten points are allotted to the top nominee, seven for second, five for third, three for fourth and one for fifth. A shortlist is then announced based on the total points accumulated by various players.

Past winners of the Golden Boy award include Rafael van der Vaart (the inaugural winner), Wayne Rooney, Lionel Messi, Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, among others. For this year's Golden Boy award, a total of 40 nominees have been announced.

On that note, here are the ten most valuable nominees for the 2021 Golden Boy award. Without further ado, let's get started:

#10 Ryan Gravenberch (Ajax/Netherlands) - €33 million

Ryan Gravenberch is one of the most promising teenagers in the game at the moment.

The then 16-year-old Ajax prodigy became the youngest player from the club to make his Eredivisie debut when he came on for a 2018-19 league game. Gravenberch became one of the youngest scorers in the competition when he found the back of the net for Ajax the following season.

Last season, the attacking midfielder bagged eight goal contributions (three goals, five assists) in Ajax's triumphant Eredivisie campaign. Gravenberch then scored against Georgia to become one of the youngest Oranje goalscorers since the turn of the century.

Courted by many top clubs from around the continent, the two-time Eredivisie winner has scored once in five league games for holders Ajax this season.

#9 Giovanni Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/USA) - €38 million

Giovanni Reyna has hit the ground running at Dortmund.

Giovanni Reyna is one of the most exciting American players to have emerged on the scene in recent times.

Still only 18, the attacking midfielder has already made close to 100 appearances across all levels for the club. Reyna has bagged 18 strikes for BvB, with two of them coming this campaign.

This season, he became the youngest player to play in 50 Bundesliga games, beating the previous record set by Chelsea star Kai Havertz.

Reyna has also excelled for his country, scoring four times in nine appearances. One of those strikes came against Mexico in the USA's 3-2 win in the CONCACAF Nations League final in June this year.

#8 Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich/Germany) - €38 million

Jamal Musiala has impressed for club and country.

Jamal Musiala, the third attacking midfielder on the list, made his club debut in Bayern Munich's treble-winning 2019-20 campaign.

Since then, Musiala has become a key player for the Bavarian giants, bagging 15 goal contributions (11 goals, four assists) in his next 44 games across competitions.

The 18-year-old has scored four times this season. He became Germany's youngest-ever debutant at a major tournament when he appeared at Euro 2020.

He hasn't opened his account in eight games for Germany, but it's only a matter of time before he does that.

#7 Nuno Mendes (PSG/Portugal) - €40 million

Nuno Mendes (right) is an exciting talent.

Nuno Mendes is one of the most exciting young full-backs in the game at the moment.

Still only 19, the Portuguese left-back had a breakout campaign with champions Sporting CP. Mendes particularly impressed with his crossing ability, tallying a better success rate than the Premier League full-backs last season.

Now at PSG on loan from Sporting, Mendes has made eight appearances for Portugal, though he didn't play a game at Euro 2020. The 19-year-old has made two Ligue 1 appearances and one in the Champions League for PSG.

Depending on how he fares at the Ligue 1 giants, PSG have an option to make Mendes' loan move permanent at the end of the season.

#6 Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen/Germany) - €45 million

Florian Wirtz is one of the most exciting talents in the Bundesliga at the moment.

Florian Wirtz is one of the most exciting young talents in the Bundesliga at the moment. The 18-year-old attacking midfielder, who debuted for his club in 2019-20, has already made over 50 appearances for Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

Wirtz grabbed headlines last year when he became one of the youngest goalscorers in Bundesliga history, netting a stunner against Bayern Munich. Less than a year later, the Leverkusen midfielder became the youngest to net five times in the competition.

The Leverkusen prodigy made his German debut after Euro 2020 this year, appearing in three FIFA World Cup 2022 qualification games. He bagged an assist in his second game, where Germany beat Armenia 6-0.

#5 Mason Greenwood (Manchester United/England) - €50 million

Mason Greenwood has had a prolific start to his career.

Mason Greenwood is one of the most versatile young strikers to have graced the game, especially in the last few years.

Yet to turn 20, Greenwood has already racked up over 100 appearances across competitions for Manchester United. He recently became the first teenager since Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Wayne Rooney to score his 20th Premier League goal.

Greenwood, who has scored in each of his first three league games this season, made his England debut in a UEFA Nations League game against Iceland.

#4 Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid/France) - €55 million

Eduardo Camavinga has hit the ground running at Real Madrid.

Eduardo Camavinga is described by many as a generational talent. After making almost 100 appearances for Rennes in three seasons, the 18-year-old moved to Real Madrid this summer.

Camavinga hit the ground running at the Santiago Bernabeu, scoring on his club debut, a 5-2 win over Celta Vigo. More than his scoring prowess, the teenager has grabbed eyeballs with his stellar tackling ability. He has made more tackles than any other Under-21 player across Europe's top five leagues this year.

The central midfielder has also impressed for France. He became Les Bleus' youngest scorer in over a century when he netted in a 7-1 friendly win over Ukraine last year.

#3 Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund/England)

Jude Bellingham is on a roll at the moment.

Jude Bellingham is the cynosure of all eyes at the moment. The 18-year-old is making heads turn with performances that are belying his tender years.

Bellingham has already made over 50 appearances for Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund, notching up six goals and nine assists across competitions. The Englishman has been on a roll this year, making five goal contributions (two goals, three assists) this season.

His goal against Besiktas in BvB's 3-2 away win in their Champions League opener made Bellingham the youngest Englishman to score an away goal in the competition. He also became the youngest player to net in consecutive Champions League games, breaking Kylian Mbappe's record.

Considering his prolific exploits, Chelsea are reportedly ready to make a big-money move for Bellingham when the transfer window reopens.

#2 Bukayo Saka (Arsenal/England) - €65 million

Bukayo Saka has impressed for club and country.

Bukayo Saka is one of the most exciting young players in the Premier League at the moment.

Having recently turned 20, the midfielder has already racked up nearly 100 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 12 goals and bagging 21 assists across competitions.

Saka was one of the few bright sparks in a dismal campaign for Arsenal last season. The Gunners failed to qualify for Europe for the first time in more than two decades after finishing a lowly eighth. The Englishman was also a star performer for his country, impressing in the Three Lions' run to the Euro 2020 final.

Saka has yet to score a league goal in five games this season, but it's only a matter of time before he does that.

#1 Pedri (Barcelona/Spain) - €80 million

Pedri has impressed for club and country.

Pedri is the frontrunner for this year's Golden Boy award. Yet to turn 19, the central midfielder has already become a key player for club and country.

He has been described as one of the best talents to emerge from Barcelona's famed La Masia academy in recent years. For Barcelona and Las Palmas combined, Pedri has made close to 100 appearances across competitions, scoring eight times and bagging 13 assists.

More than his goal contributions, it's his composure and ability to dictate play from the middle of the park that has made Pedri a regular for Barcelona and Spain. In his first major tournament at Euro 2020 this summer, the teenager produced stellar numbers in terms of passes completed and chances created, and he was adjudged Euro 2020's best young player.

Pedri then headed straight to the Tokyo Olympics, where he helped Spain win silver. He has made only a handful of appearances this season. That's because Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman doesn't want his key man to be fatigued from too many games too soon.

About the author

Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 20 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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Edited by Prem Deshpande