Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood make final 40-man shortlist for Golden Boy award
Manchester United striker Mason Greenwood and Man City’s Phil Foden have both made the final shortlist for the 2020 Golden Boy award.
The Manchester pair, who were sent home while on international duty with England for breaching coronavirus rules in Iceland, are among seven players from the Premier League who are nominated.
The 40-strong list, which was announced on Wednesday, sees Arsenal‘s Bukayo Saka, Liverpool‘s Neco Williams and Callum Hudson-Odoi of Chelsea all get the nod.
Mason Greenwood (R) and Phil Foden (L) are on the final shortlist for the Golden Boy award
Wolves’ £35million record signing Fabio Silva is also up for the award along with Foden’s newest team-mate Ferran Torres, with the pair starring at Porto and Valencia respectively before being nominated.
Foden and Greenwood have been recognised for their superb campaigns on the pitch, with Foden set to be awarded more minutes in the future by Pep Guardiola while Greenwood has excited fans at Old Trafford with his rapid progress.
However, the pair got their current campaigns off to a disappointing start after they broke coronavirus isolation restrictions by inviting two Icelandic girls to the official team hotel following a recent UEFA Nations League clash.
Both players had just made their senior debuts for the Three Lions, though manager Gareth Southgate had no option but to dismiss each of them immediately.
Wolves’ £35m record signing Fabio Silva is also up for the award after impressing with Porto
United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer also revealed he will speak with Greenwood about his personal life after the 18-year-old was seen inhaling nitrous oxide — known as hippy crack — in a video filmed in a Manchester apartment several weeks ago.
Greenwood issued a statement through United on Saturday after the film emerged on social media of him inhaling from a balloon in the company of a female friend.
He said: ‘I have now been made aware of the health risks associated with this practice — and accept that even trying it, as shown in these historical pictures, was poor judgment on my part. I strongly urge others not to follow my example.’
Their inclusion in the running for the prestigious award will be positive news for the pair, but face fierce competition from Borussia Dortmund‘s star duo Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland, who are the favourites to win the gong.
Other notable nominees include Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies, Barcelona’s Ansu Fati and Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior.
Greenwood (left) and Foden (right) got their campaigns off to a disappointing start after the pair were sent home by England for breaching coronavirus rules in Iceland
Last year’s winner, Joao Felix, failed to make the list for the award following an underwhelming season with Atletico Madrid.
Real Madrid target Eduardo Camavinga makes the list after a brilliant breakout year with Rennes.
The Golden Boy award was established by Italian publication Tuttosport in 2003, and sees players voted for by top European news outlets.
A panel of 40 journalists from a range of countries and publications select the overall winner after the list is whittled down.
Whoever is declared winner will join esteemed company, with many of European football’s biggest names having scooped the award in the past.
Borussia Dortmund’s star duo Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland are the favourites to win
In 2005 a then relatively unknown Lionel Messi was awarded the prestigious honour
A fresh-faced Wayne Rooney lifted the shimmering trophy aloft in 2004, before handing it over to none other than Lionel Messi the very next year.
In recent years the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Raheem Sterling have called the honour their own.
The most recent Premier League star to win the trophy was Anthony Martial in 2015, who was deemed European football’s most promising talent after completing his switch from Monaco to Old Trafford.
