João Simões and Quenda put Sporting in the European spotlight | OneFootball

This Wednesday, the names of the 100 players nominated for the Golden Boy Award were revealed, an accolade intended to choose the best under-21 player of the calendar year, at a ceremony held on the outskirts of the Italian city of Perugia. The list of potential winners for 2026 is packed with Portuguese players and, among them, Geovany Quenda and João Simões — both from Sporting — as well as Rodrigo Mora, Martim Fernandes and Mateus Mané.

However, there are more players in this selected group who play in the Portuguese league, with Froholdt, Porto’s midfielder, standing out as he appears at No. 8 on a list led by Barcelona star Lamine Yamal. Porto players Pietuszewski and William Gomes, Benfica’s Prestianni and Alverca’s Bastien Meupiyou are also finalists.

One of these players could follow in the footsteps of previous winners Renato Sanches and João Félix, the Portuguese players who took home the award in 2016 and 2019, respectively. However, the winner’s name will only be revealed in December.

It should be noted that the voting is carried out by journalists from various leading European media outlets. Portuguese newspaper Record was invited to the ceremony that served as a prelude to the distinction created in 2003 by the sports daily “Tuttosport”, hosted by the property of fashion magnate Brunello Cucinelli.

Geovany Quenda and João Simões, Sporting academy players named on this list, have been establishing themselves in Sporting’s first team. Having already been crowned national champions and with several Champions League matches under their belts, the young Lions have been catching the eye in European football. It should be remembered that Quenda, already sold to English side Chelsea, will play in the Premier League next season.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.