At the Ballon d’Or event, Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho of Manchester United made it to the shortlist for the Kopa Trophy.
People who are “the best-performing players worldwide under the age of 21” have won the Kopa Trophy since 2018.
The winner will be known on October 28, the same night that the Ballon d’Or is given out.
The Kopa Trophy has been won by Kylian Mbappe, Matthijs de Ligt, Pedri, Gavi, and Jude Bellingham in the past.
Andres Garnacho (20) and Samuel Mainoo (19) both had great seasons at Old Trafford, even though Erik ten Hag’s team finished eighth in the Premier League.
Maine got on the Man Utd team and played everywhere in the middle for them in the second half of the season.
He scored the game-winning goal in the FA Cup final and then became an important part of Gareth Southgate’s England team at the Euros.
During the 2023–24 season, Garnacho scored 10 goals and set up 5 others across all categories.
During their title defense in the Copa America, he also started one of Argentina’s games.
Lamine Yamal, a 17-year-old star player for Barcelona and Spain, will be the clear favorite to win the Kopa Trophy.
He is up for the award because he helped score 16 goals for Barcelona last season and had a great first international event for Spain.
The winger scored in the semi-final and was a key player all through the Euros, where Spain won in Germany, earning him the Young Player of the Tournament award.
Real Madrid’s Arda Guler, RB Salzburg’s Karim Konate, Paris Saint-Germain’s Joao Neves and Warren Zaire-Emery, Manchester City’s Savinho, and Bayern Munich’s Mathys Tel are the other players nominated for the Kopa Trophy. Ivan Rakitić is the other defender.
