Real Madrid centre-back Dean Huijsen has been tipped as a strong contender for this year’s Golden Boy award after a string of impressive performances since he arrived at the Santiago Bernabéu.
The Spanish international, who joined from Bournemouth in the summer, has quickly emerged as a revelation for Los Blancos, cementing his place as a first-team regular under Xabi Alonso.
Softfootball can confirm that in recent years, the Golden Boy awards have been dominated by Barcelona players, who have produced a series of top talents such as Gavi, Pedri and Lamine Yamal.
Real Madrid, though, saw Jude Bellingham pick up the prestigious honour in 2023 and there may be more success around the corner. Under Xabi Alonso, there has been renewed focus on youth development, with Dean Huijsen emerging as a shining beacon in the team.
In light of Huijsen’s success, his agent, Ali Barat, has offered his take on the player, even backing him to win the Golden Boy award this year as reported by Fabrizio Romano via his Facebook page. The post reads:
Ali Barat (football agent): I think Dean Huijsen will WIN the 2025 Golden Boy award.
Barat himself notably won the Award for being the best agent in 2023 at the Golden Boy ceremony held by Tuttosport, which recognised his role in orchestrating key moves. Now, Barat believes Huijsen is set to become the first Real Madrid player in a long time to win the prestigious Golden Boy award.
Huijsen was subject of an international tug-of-war between the Netherlands, where he was born, and Spain, where he was raised. Eventually he opted to play for Spain, and made his debut for the 2024 European Championship winners against the Netherlands in March 2025.
The young Spaniard has indeed shown immense maturity and appears to be spearheading the defence of a team like Real Madrid. It will, therefore, be interesting to know how the former Bournemouth starlet continues his progress this season, under the watchful eyes of manager Alonso.
At 20, Huijsen has many years ahead of him at the heart of the defences of Real Madrid and Spain, which is sure to be a very exciting prospect to fans of both sides, given how well he has come on over the last 12 months.
In an earlier post, Softfootball reported that Barcelona have suffered a major setback ahead of their La Liga clash with Valencia on September 14, as three first-team regulars have been ruled out through injury following the international break.
