M'sian wonderkid Luqman Hakim in football's Golden Boy preliminary list

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s Under-19 sensation Luqman Hakim Shamsuddin (pic) is one of the 80 young talents around the world to be preliminarily listed in the world-renowned 'Golden Boy' award, which is presented by Italian newspaper Tuttosport.

The teenager burst into the spotlight in the 2018 AFC Under-16 Championships, where he finished as the top scorer with five goals despite playing only two matches.

The 18-year-old boy from Kota Baru, Kelantan, also helped Malaysia reach the 2019 AFF Under-18 Championship. His performances for Malaysia saw him signing for Belgian Jupiter League club KV Kortrijk, which is owned by Malaysian businessman Tan Sri Vincent Tan.

Besides Luqman, the other Asian players in the list are Real Mallorca’s Takefusa Kubo (Japan), Valencia’s Lee Kang-in (South Korea) and AZ Alkmaar’s Yukinari Sugawara (Japan)

However, Luqman faces no easy competition as there are talents like Borussia Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho (England) and Erling Haland (Norway), Manchester United’s Mason Greenwood (England), Barcelona’s Ansu Fati (Spain), Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka (England), Rennes’ Eduard Camavinga (France) and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies (Canada).

The award, which was introduced in 2003, his seen players like Wayne Rooney, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Mario Gotze and Joao Felix winning the prestigious accolade. The first winner was the Netherlands’s Rafael van der Vaart, while last year’s winner was Felix, who now plies his trade for La Liga club Atletico Madrid.

The preliminary list will be whittled down to a shortlist of 20 by public vote before a panel of 40 journalists from various countries and publications select the overall winner.

To vote for Luqman, click this link https://m.tuttosport.com/sondaggi/calcio/golden-boy/2020/07/14-71771469/vota_il_golden_boy_2020_le_80_nomination/