Portugal's Renato Sanches wins 2016 European Golden Boy Award

Portugal’s Renato Sanches on 24 October 2016 was awarded the 2016 European Golden Boy award.

Sanches will be handed a trophy at a Monte Carlo ceremony. He defeated Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, Bayern's Kingsley Coman and AC Milan goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to bag the prize.

Sanches was selected following a vote by journalists from 30 newspapers across Europe to name the best player in 2016 under the age of 21.

About Renato Sanches

• Renato Sanches is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for German club Bayern Munich and the Portugal national team.

• He began his career at Benfica, a Portuguese sports club.

• Later, he agreed a move to Bayern Munich for an initial 35 million euro, the highest fee for a Portuguese player leaving the domestic league.

• He made his full international debut in March 2016.

• He was chosen for UEFA Euro 2016 at the age of 18, making him the youngest Portuguese to play in an international tournament. He scored one goal throughout the competition and won the Young Player of the Tournament.

About Golden Boy Award

• The Golden Boy is an award that is given by sports journalists to a young football player playing in Europe perceived to have been the most impressive during a calendar year.

• All nominees must be under the age of 21 and play in a European nation's top tier.

• The prize was established by Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport in 2003.

• In 2015, the award was won by France’s Anthony Martial.