Top 10 contenders for the 2016 Golden Boy award

Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney, Cesc Fabregas, Sergio Aguero, Mario Gotze, Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial - in addition to being the creme de la creme of world football, these superstars are also footballers who made it big at a very young age, thus winning the “Golden Boy” Award.

Instituted by Tuttosport, the award sees the most reputed journalists across Europe voting for their favourite Under-21 talent in the beautiful game.

With this year’s 40-man shortlist out, the contenders for the title are anybody’s guess. However, there are some youngsters whose career graphs are already significantly higher than that of the other rising stars in this list.

The top 10 contenders for the prize are a notch or two above, at least for the time being. Let’s see who they are!

#10 Gabriel “Gabigol” Barbosa (20) – Inter Milan

Gabigol Inter Milan — Gabriel Barbosa joined Inter Milan in this summer’s transfer window

Dubbed frequently as the “Next Neymar” by the Brazilian media, the former Santos forward Gabigol has instead followed the paths of two great Brazilian forwards of yesteryears – Ronaldo and Adriano, by playing for the blue half of Milan.

The 20-year old is the emerging face of the Nerazzurri, along with their talismanic captain, Mauro Icardi. Shooting to the limelight during this year’s Copa America Centenario, the starlet from Sao Paulo will be hoping to take Europe by storm.

Playing against the cerebral and highly tactical defensive lines of Serie A will further develop the finishing instincts of a forward who has already displayed his thoroughbred pedigree.

The rise of the Olympic gold medallist has been vindicated by his increasing presence at the helm of the Brazil attack. Along with the other great young talent from the nation, Gabriel Jesus, Gabigol is definitely one of the names to watch out for as the season progresses.

#9 Marco Asensio (20) – Real Madrid

It’s not every day that a plucky youngster comes out of seemingly nowhere, shakes the established order and enthrals the Bernabeu – all in the space of a few weeks. Yet, it is precisely what Marco Asensio has managed to achieve, with his career in the Los Blancos shirt promising to reach dizzying heights.

Effectively ahead of Isco – the last great Spanish hope of Real Madrid – in Zidane’s pecking order, Asensio looks set to be a fixture across their attacking third for years to come.

Such rapid progress hasn’t gone unnoticed by the Spanish manager, Julen Lopetegui. Spellbound by the youngster’s all action performance in the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla, the former Porto manager drafted Asensio in his first La Roja squad.

The call-up was an achievement in itself, considering the abundance of attacking midfield talent in Spain. Today, Madridistas are hoping and praying that they’ve finally found the successor to club legend, Guti.

#8 Leroy Sane (20) – Manchester City

The son of former Senegalese international, Souleymane Sane, Leroy Sane is one of the most exciting gems to have come out of the German football talent conveyor belt.

Catching the eye of Pep Guardiola while playing for Schalke, the current Manchester City winger has got absolutely magnetic feet, resulting in wavy runs and bemused defenders. In fact, Joachim Low has already started placing faith in the youngster during crunch situations for the national team.

Inheriting the agility of his mother, the former German gymnast Regina Weber, the Nachwuchsleistungszentrum (Schalke Academy) product is a sight to behold at full flow. Cutting in from his wand of a left foot, the 20-year old also has a vicious shot in his arsenal.

And if Raheem Sterling’s rapid improvement is anything to go by, Sane will soon be elevated to the world class level by his gaffer, Pep Guardiola.

#7 Ousmane Dembele (19) – Borussia Dortmund

The moment will be distilled in the memory of Marcos Rojo for years to come. Ousmane Dembele, all of 19 years, swivelled his hips to one side before shimmying to the other, leaving Rojo a crumpled heap on the floor.

That pre-season drubbing of Manchester United was only a sign of things to come, as the former Rennes starlet has terrorised Bundesliga defences ever since.

One of the first names in Thomas Tuchel’s line-up today, he has assuaged the fears of Dortmund fans who were staring at the doldrums with Marco Reus ruled out for the beginning of the season.

But then, this was the kid who had scored a hat-trick in the fiercely contested “Derby Breton” versus Nantes as a teenager. Called up to the France squad recently, he replaced another great left-footed attacking wizard, Antoine Griezmann.

Needless to say, Dembele is certainly a player to watch out for.

#6 Kelechi Iheanacho (19) – Manchester City

Kelechi Iheanacho has been earmarked as one of the game’s biggest prospects, ever since he led Nigeria to U-17 World Cup glory in 2017. Joining Txiki Begiristain’s Manchester City bandwagon, he has established himself as Sergio Aguero’s protege in Guardiola’s high flying team.

With the best goals per minute ratio in the Premier League last season, it is fair to say that Iheanacho has taken every chance that has come his way – remember the Manchester Derby?

Already the lynchpin of his nation’s attack – he has scored thrice in five games for the Super Eagles – Iheanacho is the symbol of a bright new wave that is lifting Nigerian football, along with the likes of Alex Iwobi and Ahmed Musa.

With Aguero and the incoming Brazilian wonderkid, Gabriel Jesus, he promises (Promise is aptly his middle name) to take Manchester City to the zenith of club football with goals galore.

#5 Dele Alli (20) – Tottenham Hotspur

From being the jewel of the MK Dons team that so exhilaratingly steamrollered Manchester United, to being the jewel of the England football team within a year, Dele Alli has surely had a heady beginning to top flight football.

The driving force behind Spurs’ title tilt last season, Alli was voted the “PFA Young Player of the Year” for his performances. Showing a pleasing ability to break late into the box and score consistently, the youngster is fast becoming England’s only hope of closing the Frank Lampard-shaped hole in midfield.

His incredible goal against Crystal Palace last season crystallized everything good about Alli’s game – confidence, agility, instinct and the technique to back it all up. Ironing out the rather unnecessary hotheadedness in his game – reminiscent of a young Wayne Rooney, is the next step in Mauricio Pochettino’s notebook to take Alli to the next level.

Surely, an outside shot for the Golden Boy award.

#4 Gianluigi Donnarumma (17) - AC Milan

In the summer of 1999, Gianluigi Buffon, arguably one of the greatest keepers of all time, was catapulted into the limelight, after winning the UEFA Cup, Coppa Italia and Seria A Goalkeeper of the Year award with Parma, in addition to a Ballon d’Or nomination.

The same summer, his namesake, Gianluigi Donnarumma was born in the city of Milan. Seventeen years later, he is the understudy of the master himself and Italy’s youngest ever international in over a century.

Goalkeepers are the oldest bloomers in football. Generally peaking at 30 plus, they hardly, if ever, break into teams, let alone world renowned ones at that as teenagers.

Donnarumma however, has always been special. Becoming AC Milan’s first choice goalkeeper at the tender age of 16, the boy from Milan is predestined to become one of the greatest footballers in the history of the game.

To put things in perspective, if he misses out this time, Donnarumma can take four more punts at winning the Golden Boy award!

#3 Marcus Rashford (18) – Manchester United

This time last year, Marcus Rashford was having a kickabout with his reserve teammates at Manchester United’s Carrington Academy. Fast forward to the turn of the year, and he was a late, desperate addition to the starting line-up of the senior team by Louis Van Gaal, stricken by an injury crisis. T

he boy who was thrown in at the deep end emerged, however, with flying colours – goals on Manchester United debut, Premier League Debut, Manchester Derby debut and England debut are what followed.

From a relative unknown to being the only bright light in England’s shambolic Euro 2016 campaign, Rashford caused the Icelandic defence more headaches in his cameo off the bench than the rest of the Three Lions did in 90 minutes.

He has carried his form to the beginning of this season too, scoring for fun as United negotiate a tricky transition into the Jose Mourinho era.

His biggest endorsement for the Golden Boy award? Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a big fan.

#2 Kingsley Coman (20) – Bayern Munich

How many footballers can boast of having played for Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus and Bayern Munich, all before turning even 20? The answer is one – Kingsley Coman.

One of the fastest players in world football today, selling Coman – their youngest ever debutant – is arguably the biggest mistake committed by PSG in the Khelaifi era. Soon enough, he was strutting his stuff for Bianconeri in the Champions League final against Barcelona.

However, it was under Guardiola at Bayern, that Coman really took a giant stride towards becoming an elite footballer. Taking on the mantle of replacing Robben and Ribery along with Douglas Costa, Coman shred Bundesliga defences to pieces with his direct running and mazy footwork.

Last year’s Golden Boy runner-up to Anthony Martial, Coman – who reached the Euro 2016 final with France – is definitely in the running to win it this time around.

#1 Renato Sanches (19) – Bayern Munich

It says a lot about Bayern Munich’s commitment to developing young talent that two of the biggest contenders fighting for the title this time around play in Bavaria.

And while Coman’s has been a steady rise, Renato Sanches has had a meteoric rise ever since his introduction to top-flight football last season. Winning both the Primeira Liga and the Taca da Liga in his only season with Benfica, Sanches is considered to be a “steal” at €35 million by Bayern – such is his potential.

And this potential was there for the world to see, as the youngest ever footballer to play for Portugal took the unfancied team by the scruff of its neck and played an instrumental role in them winning Euro 2016.

Scoring a vital goal along the way, the powerhouse performances of Sanches in midfield endeared him to the global audience and left them in awe as to how an 18-year-old can have so much power and poise in midfield.

Definitely the most exciting midfield prospect in world football.