Pedri, Donnarumma Claim Prizes At 2021 Ballon d’Or Ceremony

Spain starlet Pedri won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21 at the Ballon d’Or awards ceremony in Paris on Monday, while Italy’s Gianluigi Donnarumma was named the best goalkeeper.

Barcelona midfielder Pedri, who only turned 19 last Thursday, was a key player for Spain as they reached the semi-finals of the European Championship and featured in their side that lost in the men’s Olympic football final against Brazil in Tokyo.

In addition, he played 52 games for Barcelona, helping them win the Copa del Rey.

Pedri, who joined Barca from Las Palmas last year, recently extended his contract at the Camp Nou to 2026.

The Kopa Trophy is named after Raymond Kopa, the Real Madrid and France star of the post-war era who won the Ballon d’Or in 1958.

France forward Kylian Mbappe was the inaugural winner of the prize in 2018, and Matthijs de Ligt of Juventus and the Netherlands won it in 2019.

There was no Ballon d’Or awards ceremony last year because of the pandemic.

Donnarumma won the Yashin Trophy for the best goalkeeper after his outstanding performances in Italy’s glorious Euro 2020 campaign.

The 22-year-old left AC Milan for Paris Saint-Germain following the European Championship.

Liverpool and Brazil star Alisson was the first winner in 2019 of the Yashin Trophy, named after former USSR icon Lev Yashin.

AFP