Every winner of the Golden Boy award - ranked

Tuttosport's annual Golden Boy award for players under 21 has become one of the most prestigious in Europe.

Modern football may have brought about a lot of annoying things, but a tangible prize for what is essentially a barometer of the best wonderkid on Football Manager has been most welcome.

With 21 winners of the award already in the history books, we rank the players based on just how good they turned out to be.

21. Anderson (2008)

Oh, Anderson. Better than Kleberson, Manchester United's midfield magician was blighted by injuries and fitness issues galore.

The stocky Brazilian provided a great mixture of flair and typical United efficiency when he first arrived at Old Trafford, but it just never came together for him, rarely starting more than two games in a row or even reaching 20 matches in a Premier League season.

Such were the severity of his injury problems that Anderson retired in September 2019, aged just 31.

20. Renato Sanches (2016)

There have been signs of a Renato Sanches resurgence ever since his ill-fated move to Bayern Munich, but the Portuguese midfielder has failed to reach the heights expected of him.

Sanches claimed the Golden Boy off the back of an excellent Euro 2016 campaign with the surprise winners.

19. Joao Felix (2019)

Joao Felix had the world at his feet after scooping the Golden Boy award in 2019.

However, since his big-money move to Atletico Madrid, he has not quite kicked on as everyone had hoped. He is still a La Liga winner though, and he can be a lovely footballer to watch.

Style over substance.

18. Alexandre Pato (2009)

Another story of what could have been if not for injuries, Alexandre Pato at least showed prolonged periods of his brilliance as opposed to Anderson's cameos.

63 goals in 150 games for Milan showed Pato was, at the very least, a good striker in his heyday, winning their last Scudetto in 2011, but he never quite reached the heights he was expected to.

Still, his brief loan spell at Chelsea will make great use for pub quizzes of the future.

17. Anthony Martial (2015)

Well, at least Manchester United never had to fear paying out that Ballon d'Or clause.

The gifted French forward certainly had his purple patches at the Theatre of Dreams and enjoyed productive runs of form under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but he arguably peaked on his United debut when he scored that goal against Liverpool at the Theatre of Dreams.

Martial's career in Manchester slowly faded into obscurity before his 2024 exit.

16. Mario Balotelli (2010)

Mario Balotelli's legacy is almost certainly going to outweigh what he actually achieved in a career defined by moments over achievements.

That Euro 2012 semi-final against Germany, 'Why Always Me?', his sole Manchester City assist winning them the league, wearing a Milan shirt on TV while he was an Inter player, letting off fireworks in his own bathroom.

Yep, Balotelli is certainly a character, and would be higher up on this list if he had more moments to remember on the pitch.

15. Matthijs de Ligt (2018)

When a teenage De Ligt was captaining Ajax to Champions League semi-finals, we all thought we had a generational centre-back talent on our hands.

The Dutch defender has travelled across Europe since his Amsterdam departure, winding up at some of the continent's biggest clubs, including Bayern Munich and Juventus, but no fanbase has completely fallen in love with him overseas.

14. Rafael van der Vaart (2003)

A great, glittering career, but one that should have been on par with some of his peers of his generation.

Van der Vaart grew up in the same Dutch generation as Arjen Robben, Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie, yet he is likely to be remembered far less than all three. His spell at Tottenham was a memorable one, but not one to warrant a higher place on this list.

13. Mario Gotze (2011)

The idea of the world's greatest young talent moving to Bayern and playing under Pep Guardiola back in 2013 was one full of promise, but never was a fruitful situation in reality.

Struggling for game time at the Allianz Arena, Gotze returned to Borussia Dortmund in 2016, but has since battled various health and fitness issues.

No one will ever take that World Cup final goal away from him, however.

12. Isco (2012)

You'd think a four-time winner of the Champions League would be higher up on this list, but the brilliant Isco failed to really fulfil his potential at Real Madrid.

Sure, he's easy on the eye and is the archetypal Spanish midfielder of the 2010s, but Isco never established himself as one of the big dogs at the Santiago Bernabeu.

He continues to offer sequences of silk at Real Betis in his twilight vintage.

11. Gavi (2022)

Diminutive in frame, but there's nothing subtle about Gavi when he takes to the field.

The Spanish midfielder combines vintage La Furia Roja grity with La Masia-inspired technical mastery to create an incredibly well-rounded operator in the middle of the park.

He's a fantastic footballer, but we haven't seen him build on his Golden Boy award after he tore his ACL in 2023.

10. Pedri (2021)

Most young players need time to bed in during their first season in the big time. Not Pedri.

The spritely midfielder missed just one La Liga game for Barcelona during the 2020/21 campaign and also helped Spain go close to winning Euro 2020 and the Olympics during an incredibly busy summer.

What a marvel, but injuries have blighted his young career to date.

9. Paul Pogba (2013)

For all of the titles, including a World Cup of his own, that Paul Pogba has won in his career, it still feels like a situation of unfulfilled potential.

On his day, the Frenchman is the complete midfielder, but that day is occurring once in a blue moon at the moment, and has been for some time.

A player of Pogba's ability shouldn't need others to continually hold his hand, but nevertheless is well worthy of a spot this high on the list.

8. Raheem Sterling (2014)

You could well make an argument that Raheem Sterling, despite all of the doubters and unnecessary abuse he's received in recent years, is the best English player of his generation.

A key figure in one of English football's most dominant teams in history, Sterling has evolved from a tricky winger into a constant goal threat, tackling issues off the pitch on the way to global stardom.

7. Jude Bellingham (2023)

It's just not right for 19/20-year-olds to do what Bellingham did upon his arrival at one of the world's grandest clubs.

The Englishman took the Spanish capital by storm at the start of the 2023/24 season, with the freedom offered by Carlo Ancelotti allowing Bellingham to regularly appear on the scoresheet.

Sweating aura and boasting an infectious swagger, Bellingham will be in the Ballon d'Or conversation for years to come. He has a knack for producing in the biggest moments.

6. Cesc Fabregas (2006)

It's rare that a player's peak years come at the start of his career, but Cesc Fabregas certainly ticks that box.

Somewhere between a No. 8 and a No. 10 for Arsenal, the Spaniard was a revolutionary midfielder in the late 2000s, often carrying the Gunners' workload himself.

Fruitful spells at Barcelona and Chelsea followed, where he finally won the silverware his time at Arsenal deserved.

5. Sergio Aguero (2007)

Sergio Aguero was a consistent 20-goal a season threat for Manchester City, with his arrival coinciding with the shift in power in the north-west, but he broke through as a youngster at Atletico Madrid.

Extra points are given for having one of football's seminal moments, winning the Premier League title with that goal against QPR back in 2012.

4. Erling Haaland (2020)

The inevitable Nordic machine has been scoring at an utterly relentless rate ever since he broke onto the senior stage with RB Salzburg.

His 2020 Golden Boy award arrived while he was tearing Bundesliga defences apart while leading Borussia Dortmund's line, and he's since ascended to new heights in Manchester, where he's attempting to break every single scoring record known to man.

3. Kylian Mbappe (2017)

Mbappe surprisingly hasn't climbed the mountain yet, but it's hard to imagine a future in which the Frenchman doesn't get his hands on at least a couple of Ballons d'Or.

With a stellar World Cup win and a few Ligue 1 titles already under his belt, Mbappe's legacy is already far greater than many icons throughout football history.

Champions League glory beckons in the Spanish capital having joined Real Madrid from PSG in 2024.

2. Wayne Rooney (2004)

The top scorer in Manchester United's history makes the top two by the skin of his teeth. A silverware-laden career which was only ever missing a trophy with England, Wayne Rooney has almost become underrated because of the expectations put upon him when he was a teenager.

His records as Man Utd's and England's all-time leading scorers speak for themselves, though.

1. Lionel Messi (2005)

Simply the best (better than all the rest), there's no conceivable argument that would have Lionel Messi not finishing as the No. 1 here.

We don't need to write a book, chapter or even elongated paragraph to explain this decision - everything we could say is redundant at this point. Enjoy the greatness.

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