Massimo Franchi Monday 4 December 2023, 08:42
In the twenty-year history of Golden Boy there had never been an Under 21 footballer to achieve such an overwhelming, mammoth and enormous victory as his. Yes, certainly: Messi in 2005, Pogba in 2013, Mbappé in 2017 and Haaland in 2020 they had also dominated, but at the time the jury of Tuttosport it was made up (initially) of 30 journalists from the most authoritative European newspapers, which then rose to 40 in 2018 and finally to 50 last year. And no one had previously been able to take advantage of it a vote as plebiscitarian as English Jude Bellinghamwho will be crowned tonight in Turin Golden Boy 2023 on the OGR stage. 45 out of 50 jurors voted it first, while the other 5 placed it second in their preferences for a total of 485 points out of a maximum of 500 (average of 97% of the votes). Only the French-Cameroonian Kylian Mbappé had equaled him in statistics (ditto 97%), but determined by 27 first places and 3 seconds out of only 30 voters for a total of 291 points out of 300. Who can dare say that the PSG ace could he have even improved Bellingham’s percentage by obtaining at least 18 first and 2 second places from the hypothetical 20 more journalists of the extended jury? And our interview with the new Golden Boy begins precisely with this sensational statistical fact.
Jude, you literally annihilated the competition…
«Oh yes, I saw it. Is fantastic. An extraordinary score. I am pleased and obviously I thank all the jurors who voted for me, granting me their favor».
There has never before been a Real Madrid player to win the Golden Boy…
«I can say that I know quite well the roll of honor of this prestigious international trophy which was born in the very year in which I was born too, 2003. I am the third Englishman to win it after Wayne Rooney, one of my idols, in 2005 when he was at Manchester United, and Raheem Sterling in 2014, when he was registered for Liverpool».
The latest winners were two midfielders from your great rivals Barcelona: first Pedri and then Gavi. You stemmed the Blaugrana’s dominance…
«There are many happy people in Madrid, starting with the president. I knew and was able to see first-hand the antagonism that exists between the two factions of the fans. But most of all I’m proud of myself. The Golden Boy is a wonderful award».
Golden Boy, so much talent in the top 20: the final ranking
2023-12-04 07:42:00
#Bellingham #exclusive #Golden #Boy #beginning #Ancelotti #disappointed
