Golden Boy 2021: the 40 nominees shortlist has been revealed

The top 40 players under 21 in world football has been revealed by Italian outlet Tuttosport ahead of the 2021 Golden Boy award. Four Englishmen have been included in the list, including Leicester City full-back Luke Thomas, while previous winners include Erling Haaland, Raheem Sterling, Anthony Martial, Kylian Mbappe and Paul Pogba.

The names were announced on Friday by Italian sports publication Tuttosport, who founded the award in 2003, and has grown to become one of the most prestigious awards in football. 

The award is given to a young footballer (under the age of 21) playing in Europe's top leagues who is seen to have been the most impressive during a calendar year. Bukayo Saka, Mason Greenwood, Jude Bellingham and Luke Thomas have been included in the 40-man shortlist for the Golden Boy award.

Previous winners include Wayne Rooney (2004), Lionel Messi (2005), Sergio Aguero (2007), Kylian Mbappe (2017) and in 2020, Erling Haaland. In June, 100 names were published, with the list being trimmed to 40 on Friday, and by October 15, 20 names will be in the final list to be voted on.

Golden Boy 2021: The complete list

Jude Bellingham - Borussia Dortmund

Karim Adeyemi - RB Salzburg

Rayan Ait-Nouri - Wolves

Ander Barrenetxea - Real Sociedad

Myron Boadu - Monaco

Brian Brobbey - RB Leipzig

Eduardo Camavinga - Real Madrid

Rayan Cherki - Lyon

Mohamed-Ali Cho - Angers

Francisco Conceicao - Porto

Jamal Musiala - Bayern Munich

Charles De Ketelaere - Club Brugge

Ersin Destanoglu - Besiktas

Jeremy Doku - Rennes

Eric Garcia - Barcelona

Bryan Gil - Tottenham Hotspur

Goncalo Ramos - Benfica

Ryan Gravenberch - Ajax

Mason Greenwood - Manchester United

Josko Gvardiol - RB Leipzig

Pedri - Barcelona

Ilaix Moriba - RB Leipzig

Odilon Kossounou - Bayer Leverkusen

Noni Madueke - PSV

Felix Mambimbi - Young Boys

Gabriel Martinelli - Arsenal

Mykhaylo Mudryk - Shakhtar Donetsk

Mohamed Ihattaren - Sampdoria

Nuno Mendes - Paris Saint-Germain

Roberto Piccoli - Atalanta

Bukayo Saka - Arsenal

Yeremi Pino - Villarreal

Gio Reyna - Borussia Dortmund

William Saliba - Marseille

Martin Satriano - Inter Milan

Luke Thomas - Leicester City

Khephren Thuram - OGC Nice

Jurrien Timber - Ajax

Florian Wirtz - Leverkusen

Ilya Zabarnyi - Dynamo Kyiv