Talents Calendar
In the end, FC Bayern could not keep offensive talent Kenan Yildiz in their own ranks. A long list of top clubs such as PSG, FC Barcelona and Juventus Turin courted the services of the 17-year-old last summer, whose contract in Munich expired. “Yildiz is a young, talented player who we would have liked to have accompanied further on his way. However, we couldn’t and didn’t want to meet his financial demands,” commented sports director Hasan Salihamidzic. Unlike Juventus, where Yildiz finally signed until 2025. Above all, the Bianconeri lured with a suitable sporting project.
“Juve are relying heavily on him,” explains Sinan Yener, editor for Transfermarkt TR. His first appearances in Turin clothes show how comfortable the native of Regensburg feels. Yildiz has recorded nine goals and five assists in 17 games for Juventus U19s. A brilliant start that caught the attention of the Italian press. The Turin newspaper “Tuttosport” has already chosen Yildiz as the successor to Paul Pogba (29), who also left the United academy on a free transfer in 2012. “In addition to Pogba, Federico Chiesa and Ángel Di María are the main role models for Yildiz, his movements on the pitch are reminiscent of Kaká. In Germany comparisons were made with Mesut Özil. Above all, Yildiz is looking for the opportunity to graduate,” says Yener.
So it’s hardly surprising that Yildiz was one of the 60 nominees for the 2022 “Golden Boy” award, which annually honors the best talent in Europe under the age of 21. “He’s a playmaker, shows good physical development and fitness, plays the game vertically and gets the ball quickly into the penalty area. He shows very good ball control and very good dribbling,” Yener summarizes. A weakness is currently that Yildiz “does not act calmly enough” in some situations.
Bellingham, Yildiz & Co.: The 60 nominees for the Golden Boy 2022
Jew Bellingham | BVB | UK | Market value: €80 million
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Market values as of August 15th
Peter | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €80 million
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Yamal Musiala | Bayern Munich | Germany | Market value: €65 million
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Gavi | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €60 million
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Ansu Fati | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €60 million
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Eduardo Camavinga | Madrid | France | Market value: €55 million
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Yéremy Pino | Villareal | Spain | Market value: €40 million
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Nuno Mendes | Sporting/ PSG | Portugal | Market value: €40 million
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Giovanni Reyna | BVB | United States | Market value: €35 million
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Karim Adeyemi | RB Salzburg/BVB | Germany | Market value: €35 million
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Ryan Gravenberch | Ajax/ FC Bayern | Netherlands | Market value: €35 million
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Josko Gvardiol | RB Leipzig | Croatia | Market value: €35 million
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Hugo Ekitike | Reims Stadium/PSG | France | Market value: €28 million
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Harvey Elliot | Liverpool | UK | Market value: €22 million
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Nico Gonzalez | Barcelona/Valencia | Spain | Market value: €20 million
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Lukeba Castle | Lyons | France | Market value: €20 million
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Anthony Elanga | United | Sweden | Market value: €20 million
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Adam Hlozek | Sparta Prague/ Bayer 04 | Czech Republic | Market value: €19 million
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Aaron Hickey | Bologna/Brentford | Scotland | Market value: €18 million
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Noni Madueke | PSV | UK | Market value: €18 million
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Arnaud Kalimuendo | Lens/PSG/Rennes | France | Market value: €18 million
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Destiny Udogie| Greece/Udinese | Italy | Market value: €17 million
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Piero Hincapie | Bayer Leverkusen | Ecuador | Market value: €17 million
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Youssoufa Moukoko | BVB | Germany | Market value: €15 million
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Pape Matar Sarr | Metz/Spurs | Senegal | Market value: €15 million
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Mohamed Ali Cho | Angers/Real Sociedad | France | Market value: €15 million
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Yunus Musah | Valencia | United States | Market value: €15 million
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Fabio Silva | Wolves/Anderlecht | Portugal | Market value: €15 million
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Fabio Carvalho | Fulham/Liverpool | Portugal | Market value: €12 million
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Nicola Zalewski | Roma | Poland | Market value: €12 million
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Nico Williams | Athletic Bilbao | Spain | Market value: €12 million
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Giorgio Scalvini | Atalanta BC | Italy | Market value: €10 million
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Benjamin Sesko | RB Salzburg | Slovenia | Market value: €10 million
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Ansgar Knauff | Frankfurt (BVB loan) | Germany | Market value: €10 million
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Wilfried Gnonto | FC Zurich | Italy | Market value: €10 million
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Kristjan Asllani | Empoli/Inter | Albania | Market value: €10 million
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Brian Brobby | ajax | Netherlands | Market value: €9 million
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Reinier | BVB/Real Madrid | Brazil | Market value: €8 million
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Eliot Matazo | Monaco | Belgium | Market value: €8 million
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Francisco Conceicao | Oporto/Ajax | Portugal | Market value: €8 million
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Jan Thielmann | 1.FC Cologne | Germany | Market value: €7.5 million
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Lucien Agoume | Stade Brest (Inter loan) | France | Market value: €7 million
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Mattia Viti | Empoli/Nice | Italy | Market value: €7 million
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Cole Palmer | Man City | UK | Market value: €6 million
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Carney Chukwuemeka | Villa/Chelsea | UK | Market value: €6 million
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Ki-Jana Hoever | Wolves/PSV | Netherlands | Market value: €6 million
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Paulo Bernardo | Benfica | Portugal | Market value: €5 million
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Sebastiano Esposito | FC Basel/Anderlecht (Inter loan) | Italy | Market value: €5 million
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Henrique Araujo | Benfica B | Portugal | Market value: €5 million
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Fabio Miretti | Juventus | Italy | Market value: €5 million
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Stipe Biuk | Hajduk Split | Croatia | Market value: €4.5 million
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Alex Balde | Barcelona B | Spain | Market value: €4 million
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Matteo Cancellieri | Hellas/Lazio| Italy | Market value: €3 million
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Bjorn Meijer | Groningen/Bruges | Netherlands | Market value: €3 million
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Matías Soulé | Juventus U23 | Argentina | Market value: €2.5 million
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Alejandro Garnacho | United | Argentina | Market value: €2 million
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Mathy’s phone | Rennes/FC Bayern | France | Market value: €2 million
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Karamoko Dembele | Celtic/Brest | France | Market value: €0.25 million
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Diego Moreira | Benfica U19 | Portugal | Market value: –
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Kenan Yıldız | FC Bayern/Juventus | Turkey | Market value: –
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At the age of five, Yildiz started playing football in his home country at SV Sallern Regensburg, after just one year he went to the youth team of the then third division team SSV Jahn. But the talent did not go undiscovered here for long either, so that the next year he made the jump to big FC Bayern, where Yildiz trained for ten years. “He was considered one of Munich’s greatest talents, so the free transfer to Turin was a serious blow,” says Yener.
Internationally, Yildiz plays for the Turkish Football Association and made his U21 debut in September. The offensive talent previously missed the U17 European Championship in May due to a stretched ligament. “Of course, the DFB is also keeping an eye on him, but the Turkish association wants and will definitely go all-in here. If he continues like this, it won’t be long before he makes the leap into the senior national team,” Yener said. Juventus fans are already demanding that Yildiz be given a chance with the pros and are celebrating the transfer coup for free.
Every day from 1st to 24th December Transfermarkt presents a talent from the 2005 or 2006 vintage from a different country. Sponsors, data scouts and users are used as experts and report interesting facts about 24 young players in our talent calendar, which you should keep a close eye on in the future. For example with the TM watch list.
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