Barcelona midfielder and Spain international Gavi has won the Golden Boy award for 2022 to add to his Kopa Trophy landed at this week's Ballon d'Or awards.
Gavi – who came to prominence a year ago with a meteoric rise for both club and country – enjoyed a strong breakthrough campaign on the biggest stage. He fought off competition from Jude Bellingham, Jamal Musiala and Eduardo Camavinga to land the award, alongside 10 nominees from Premier League clubs.
The Golden Boy award is won by Europe's best youngster aged under 21 in a calendar year and began in 2003. Barca midfielder Pedri, who has been nominated again for this year's shortlist, landed last year's award and past winners include Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Wayne Rooney.
Gavi joined Barcelona as an 11-year-old in 2015 having initially begun his youth career at Real Betis. He progressed through the age groups of La Masia before making his first-team debut in the early stages of the 2021-22 campaign under then-Barca boss Ronald Koeman.
Aged 18, he has already notched up 61 first-team appearances for the Blaugrana and has become a vital part of their team. Alongside fellow teenage sensation Pedri, he is ahead of Frenkie de Jong in the pecking order in Xavi Hernandez's side and is one of the first names on the teamsheet.
Gavi has also emerged as a regular in the Spain national team – where he has already won 12 caps and is greatly admired by boss Luis Enrique. Just as at club level, he has ousted multiple more experienced and highly talented players to earn the position.
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Premier League nominees for the award included Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott and Manchester United's Amad Diallo - who is currently on a season-long loan deal at Sunderland. Yet it was Gavi who earned the crown, adding to the Kopa Trophy, which he was awarded earlier in the week. He will collect the prize at a ceremony in Turin on 7 November.
The prize was established by Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport in 2003 with the voting process of judges including sports journalists from across Europe. Each juror is allowed to nominate five players, the juror will allocate ten points to the player that they perceive as the most impressive, seven for the second, five for the third, three for the fourth, and one point for the fifth-most impressive.
