Golden Boy Web: What the Other Winners, Before Mouzakitis, Accomplished

Christos Mouzakitis emerged as the big winner in the vote for the Golden Boy Web 2025 Award, with the Greek midfielder of Olympiacos FC surpassing the likes of Kenan Yildiz, Arda Guler, and Desiré Doué in votes.
The 18-year-old international became the first Greek player to win the award and added his name to a “golden” list, alongside those of Jobe Bellingham and Ansu Fati, among others. But what have the seven previous winners done since winning the award?

Mouzakitis and the others

2024: Kenan Yildiz (Juventus)

The 20-year-old attacking midfielder for Juventus won last year’s award with 52 appearances, 12 goals, and nine assists in all competitions. In fact, in those matches, he played in a variety of positions behind the striker, but mainly on the left and in the “10” position. He started his career in Germany, passing through the Bayern academies before ending up in Turin. In total, he has played 98 matches at the senior-team level (all with the Italian club), scoring 19 goals and providing 15 assists, and his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €75 million.

2023: Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund/Real Madrid)

The biggest name on the list is Jobe Bellingham, who started out at Birmingham, moved to Dortmund in 2020, and became one of Real Madrid’s stars in the summer of 2023. In the 2022-23 season, he played 42 matches with the German side, scoring 14 goals and providing seven assists in all competitions, and when he received the Golden Boy Web award, he was already wearing the Spanish giants’ jersey. In his career, he has played 287 matches, scoring 69 goals and providing 56 assists, and his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €180 million.

2022: Nicola Zalewski (Roma)

In the 2021-22 season, Zalewski was impressive with Roma (24 games, 2 assists) and won the Conference League under José Mourinho. A product of the Roma academy, the Polish winger continued his career on loan at Inter Milan, who bought him and sold him to Atalanta last summer. In total, he has played 148 matches with 4 goals and 11 assists, and his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €17 million.

2021: Karim Adeyemi (Salzburg)

Another Golden Boy Web winner is Adeyemi, who played 39 games for Salzburg in the 2020-21 season, scoring 9 goals and providing 11 assists. He began his career in academies in Germany, including at Bayern Munich, and ended up at the Austrian club where he made his name. In the summer of 2022, he transferred to Borussia Dortmund, where he continues to this day, being one of the key players in a career with 250 matches, 77 goals, 63 assists, and a market value of €60 million, according to Transfermarkt.

2020: Ansu Fati (Barcelona)

The unluckiest player on the list is Ansu Fati. He started at La Masia, Barcelona’s historic academy, made a splash in his debut with the senior team, and deservedly won the award. However, a series of injuries caused him to lose ground, and he was loaned out in order to return to his previous level. This seems to be happening this year, where he’s playing for Monaco. In the season he won the award (2019-20), he scored 8 goals and provided 1 assist in 33 matches with the Catalans, while overall he has played 161 matches, scored 39 goals, provided 11 assists, while his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €10 million.

2019: Matteo Guendouzi (Arsenal)

The French midfielder impressed in his early days with Arsenal, but his subsequent performances were not as impressive. His 48 matches in the 2018-19 season (1 goal, 2 assists) earned him the Golden Boy Web award for 2019. He then played for Hertha and Marseille on loan, with the French club buying him outright and Lazio acquiring him in the summer of 2024. In total, he has played 366 matches in his career, scoring 18 goals and providing 38 assists, and his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €32 million.

2018: Justin Kluivert (Ajax)

The son of football legend Patrick Kluivert, he was the first winner of the award in 2018, after a season that began at Ajax but ended at Roma, where he transferred in the second half of 2017-18. This was followed by loans to Leipzig, Nice and Valencia, and in the summer of 2023, he was bought by Bournemouth. In total, he has played 336 matches in his career, scoring 78 goals and providing 59 assists, and his market value, according to Transfermarkt, is €35 million.