Lamine Yamal was named the world's best young player of the year as he won the 2024 Kopa Trophy due to his excellent displays for Barcelona and Spain.
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Yamal announced as Kopa Trophy winnerNamed best young player in the worldTeen starring for Spain and BarcelonaFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
The 17-year-old winger was handed the award on Monday after a year in which he established himself as a first-team star at Barcelona and played a key role in Spain's Euro 2024 success.
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Yamal has been handed the trophy for best player under the age of 21, taking the award from last year's winner and Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham. He follows his current Barcelona team-mates Gavi and Pedri in claiming the prize, while Kylian Mbappe and Matthijs de Ligt are the other previous winners.
THE FULL KOPA TROPHY RANKINGS
Yamal finished top of the rankings with Real Madrid and Turkey youngster Arda Guler coming in second, while Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo was third. Manchester City's new signing Savinho was fourth, while Yamal's Barcelona team-mate Pau Cubarsi was fifth. Joao Neves, who was signed from Paris Saint-Germain after an excellent year at Benfica, was joint-sixth, tied with United's Alejandro Garnacho. Bayern Munich's Mathys Tel, Warren Zaire-Emery of Paris Saint-Germain and Red Bull Salzburg and Ivory Coast forward Karim Konate were all tied for eighth place.
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Yamal won the prize just two days after he helped Barcelona to an incredible 4-0 win against Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu in La Liga. He will hope the prize gives him a boost as Barca, who have won their last five games, come up against Catalan rivals Espanyol in their next match.
