The 2019 Golden Boy Award shortlist was recently released, and Real Madrid’s talented teenage Brazilians Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo both made the list. But since it’s not likely they win this year, what are the chances of Real having a Golden Boy in 2020?
There have been two players in history to have won the Golden Boy award before going on to play for Real Madrid, but no player has won the award while actually at Real. Inaugural winner Rafael van der Vaart won at Ajax before making his way to Hamburg and Real, while Isco was a starlet at Malaga in 2012 before making the swap to Los Blancos in 2013.
This year, Real Madrid have two players on the prestigious award’s shortlist in Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior. There’s an argument to be made that Rodrygo shouldn’t be on the list, but he has made quite the impression this season, including a ridiculously fast debut wondergoal against Osasuna last month. Meanwhile, Vinicius emerged as a star last season for Real, proving to be a sign of hope for Los Blancos.
Vinicius will be 20 when the 2020 Golden Boy Award is announced, and Rodrygo will still be a teenager. The rule is that players must be under the age of 21 when the award is presented, so loanees Achraf Hakimi and Martin Odegaard wouldn’t be eligible as 21-year-olds. (There’s also an unwritten rule that established superstars cannot win it, hence why Lionel Messi only won the award once and Kylian Mbappe isn’t in contention this year.)
Looking into the crystal ball, Vinicius and Rodrygo are still the only realistic options to win the award for Real in 2020. Takefusa Kubo is too young and unproven to be a candidate in 2020, even as he has shown real flashes for Mallorca and Japan at times in 2019.
Between Vinicius and Rodrygo, Vinicius may have the better path to playing time due to his experience, which places him ahead of Rodrygo in the pecking order. And Vinicius is quite the talent, with a real eye for goal that will only become more prolific in 2020.
However, there’s something special about Rodrygo. That goal against Osasuna was a microcosm of all the qualities he brings to the table. Rodrygo is intelligent beyond his years as a forward, making deadly runs off the ball. He has an eye for space and a knack for finding it, using his explosiveness and skill on the ball to pounce when he catches the defense napping. And after blowing by defenders with the ball at his feet, Rodrygo has the technical quality to finish the move on his own.
Rodrygo will need to continue to improve his passing and link-up play, and there are elements to being a winger at the top level that he still needs to refine. But Rodrygo looks like a good bet to win a Golden Boy award in the next couple of years. He will command more playing time with Real as his stock grows, and it isn’t impossible to see him becoming a regular in 2020, especially if Gareth Bale exits next summer.
There are more and more talented young players getting opportunities to play in Europe’s top leagues, especially in Ligue 1 and the increasingly competitive Bundesliga. So the likes of Vinicius and Rodrygo will have competition. However they also have rare talent and will only become more deadly in Real Madrid’s attack as their experience – and the trust from the organization – grows.