The 18-year-old FC Barcelona player won the award given by the Turin newspaper “Tuttosport” for the best Under-21 player of the year.
The Spanish Pedro González López, Pedri, FC Barcelona midfielder, won this Monday the Golden Boy award for the best under-21 player of the year, after an outstanding season in which he settled in the Barça first team, reached the semi-final at the Eurocup and won silver at the Tokyo Olympics.
Born in Tegueste on November 25, 2002, Pedri succeeded Norwegian Erling Braut Haaland, which won the 2020 edition of this award given by the Turin newspaper Tuttosport.
The winner was announced at the headquarters of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) in Rome, in an event attended by the director of the Turin daily, Xavier Jacobelli, and the federal president, Gabriele Gravina.
“We decided to give a good birthday present to Pedri, from Barcelona, who will be 19 years old on November 25,” Jacobelli assured EFE at the end of the event, adding “Barcelona is an example to follow because it invests in the future with its youth from the quarry ”.
The award ceremony will be on December 13 in Turin and Pedri will attend personally with a delegation from FC Barcelona.
Joined by FC Barcelona in 2020 from Las Palmas, Pedri established himself as a key element in the eleven of the Catalan team, with which he conquered the Copa del Rey after winning the final 4-0 against Athletic Bilbao.
His great performances were rewarded with the call of the Spanish coach Luis Enrique Martínez, who gave him made his debut against Georgia in March and summoned him to play at the European Championship last summer, in which Spain fell in the semifinals after losing the penalty shootout against Italy, ultimately champion.
With practically no rest, the canary traveled to Japan to play with Luis De La Fuente’s Olympic team in the soccer tournament, finished with the final lost against Brazil.
On the list of winners of this award are the Dutch Rafael Van Der Vaart, elected best young man in the first edition, 2003, the Argentines Lionel Messi (2005), Sergio Agüero (2007), the Spanish Cesc Fábregas (2006) and Isco Alarcón (2012) or the French Kylian Mbappé (2017).
“I want to thank Barça and the national team”
After being made official as the winner, Pedri expressed his “pride” in winning this award and thanked his club and the Spanish team for the opportunity they offered him.
“For me it is a pride to be the winner of the Golden Boy 2021. I want to thank Tuttosport, to the members of the jury and to all the fans who have been supporting me during this year, which for me has been incredible, ”Pedri said in a video posted on his social networks.
“I want to thank Barça, the national team, my family, my friends and the people who have supported me. Without them, this would not have been possible. A hug ”, added the canary. (D)
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