Belgian midfielder Eliot Matazo who is of Kenyan descent has been nominated in the prestigious 2022 Golden Boy award after an impressive season with AS Monaco in the French Ligue 1.Matazo who is born to a Kenyan mother also has roots from DR Congo but has opted to represent Belgium where he has featured a number of times for the Under 21 side where he has already made five appearances.🇧🇪Eliot Matazo nommé pour le Golden Boy 2022. 🗞 https://t.co/B0s1d3SwIB pic.twitter.com/hXvMsSduzM— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) June 16, 2022 The 20-year-old will however face stern competition from Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid), Jude Bellingham and Karim Adeyemi (Dortmund), Gavi and defending champion Pedri (Barcelona), Nuno Mendes (PSG), and Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich).The nominees’ list of 100 will be reduced by 20 each month to determine the 20 finalists in October. 40 journalists from all over Europe (L’Equipe, Marca, Bild, The Times…) will then vote to elect the lucky winner.The Golden Boy is an award that is given by sports journalists to a young footballer playing in Europe perceived to have been the most impressive during a calendar year.##NAJAVA_MECA_6477795##All nominees of the Golden Boy must be under the age of 21 and play in a European nation’s top tier with Barcelona’s Pedri bagging the award last year.In the just-concluded season, Matazo played 28 games (18 in Ligue 1, 6 in European cups and 4 in the French Cup) and chipped in with an assist in the French Cup.Oliech: Munro should sell Mathare UnitedDuring last season, Matazo was delighted to be learning under the wings of Aurélien Tchouameni who has since departed to Real Madrid, Youssouf Fofana, and the experienced Cesc Fàbregas.“I am very happy with my progress within the Club. I am very well surrounded by players like Aurélien Tchouameni, who is improving rapidly and who has become an international, and Youssouf Fofana, who already has more than 100 professional appearances. And then there is Cesc Fàbregas, whose career and background inspire me a lot,” said Matazo.
