Juventus building future around Kenan Yildiz, the child star who 'doesn't feel pressure', ahead of Derby d'Italia with Inter
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Published 12/09/2025 at 13:43 GMT+1
Year after year, Kenan Yildiz keeps leaving jaws on the floor as his rapid rise continues. The Juventus sensation has already smashed several records, taken on the decorated club's most iconic shirt and been described as someone who could "play in any Juventus team of the last 40 years." Now, he is aiming to repeat the dazzling magic of a year ago when rivals Internazionale visit Turin.
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It is October 27, 2024, and Juventus are in trouble. With over an hour played, champions Internazionale lead 4-2.
Time is running out in the Derby d'Italia, and Thiago Motta must act fast. Turning to his bench, the Juve coach's gaze falls upon Kenan Yildiz. Minutes later, the No. 10 shirt is pulled on, shin guards inserted, and it is up to the 19-year-old to silence San Siro.
Few could have anticipated the relish with which the teenage sensation would take to his assignment. With 20 minutes left, he gathers the ball just inside the Inter half, skips forward and drills a finish into the bottom corner.
Ten minutes later, Yildiz strikes again. He finds space in the box to smash a low finish past Yann Sommer and level one of the most astonishing Derby d'Italias of recent history, performing the iconic tongue-out Alessandro Del Piero celebration for good measure.
Rarely are young players able to deliver in such a way and on such a stage. But then, this is not just any young player. The scale of Yildiz's talent has ensured that almost every step of his eventful career has been accompanied by soaring expectations.
And now, ahead of the first Derby d’Italia of the new season on his home turf of Turin - live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Saturday - the Turkish jewel, recently named Serie A Player of the Month, is eyeing another leap towards being considered one of European football’s bona fide golden boys.
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A rapid rise - and important haircut
Born in Bavaria to a German mother and Turkish father, Yildiz did not take long to start making waves in the world of football. After joining Bayern Munich’s youth ranks aged seven, he had signed a deal with Adidas by the age of 10.
His form at youth level captured attention across the continent as he rose through the ranks to Under-19 level at Bayern, before Juve reportedly beat Barcelona to his signature when Yildiz’s deal in Germany came to an end in 2022.
The rise continued in Italy. The winger dazzled with Juve’s U19s and he was soon promoted to the Juve Next Gen side competing in Italy’s third tier, where the likes of Dean Huijsen, Matias Soule and Nicolo Fagioli have also come through in recent years.
More history came when he scored on his full senior debut against Frosinone in December 2023, becoming Juventus’ youngest foreign goalscorer in Serie A aged 18.
It was not just any old goal either; Yildiz shimmied through three defenders like they were not there, before finishing with composure.
Yildiz could have been forgiven at that point for feeling like he was on cloud nine, but then-coach Massimiliano Allegri quickly brought him down to earth again.
Asked about how the teenager fared on his senior debut, Allegri told a press conference: "Tomorrow he needs to get his hair cut because he touched it a hundred times. Let’s take things from there."
So he did. Yildiz went straight to the barbers, where he was filmed by the club’s media team telling his coach that "everything you say, I’m going to do, because you’re the boss" as he got a trim.
"I was glad," Allegri responded. "It showed he’s a smart lad who listens."
Following in Del Piero's footsteps
Allegri is now long gone - since taking the reins at AC Milan - but Yildiz’s rise continued at a rapid pace after his astonishing first league strike.
At the end of his first senior season, he played every game as Turkey reached the Euro 2024 quarter-finals. On his return, he adopted his idol Del Piero’s iconic Juventus No. 10 shirt, the same worn by the likes of Michel Platini and Roberto Baggio, at the tender age of 19.
It was a big statement by the club that the future was in Yildiz’s hands, as he was also handed a new deal to 2029.
Giorgio Chiellini, now working as a director for the club, made that faith unmistakably clear recently. "Yildiz would have played in any Juventus team of the last 40 years," he said.
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The Del Piero-inspired celebrations became a regular sight in 2024/25 as Yildiz took his idol’s record as Juve’s youngest UEFA Champions League scorer last season, while his memorable brace against Inter made him the youngest player to score a Derby d’Italia double too.
Overall, he racked up 12 goals and nine assists in all competitions during a turbulent campaign where Motta lost his job before Igor Tudor narrowly steered the club into the top four.
Now, with Tudor handed the reins on a permanent basis and a busy end to the transfer window leaving the Bianconeri with a stacked attack, there is hope and expectation that Yildiz can start to deliver dazzling displays on a more consistent basis in 2025/26.
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'I don't feel pressure'
So far, the signs have been promising. Yildiz was Juve’s standout player at the FIFA Club World Cup over the summer, where he scored three goals before their last-16 elimination to Real Madrid, and he kicked off the new Serie A campaign by showing off his creativity with a pair of sumptuous assists that unlocked a 2-0 win over Parma.
Opta highlighted after that game that Yildiz has been involved in more goals in all competitions than any other Serie A player since the start of March, with six goals and five assists in 14 matches. If there is pressure on his shoulders, it is not showing.
"I don’t feel [pressure]," he told Rai Sport in August. "I always want to do well because I only think about my team, not about social media. That’s what I’m focused on."
Yildiz and Francisco Conceicao’s buzzing industry and dizzying dribbling can put most defenders in a spin, while up front, Jonathan David and Dusan Vlahovic have got off to strong starts, despite the latter being linked with an exit all summer.
On deadline day, the signings of striker Lois Openda from RB Leipzig and winger Edon Zhegrova from Lille added yet more firepower to Tudor’s arsenal. The six attackers scored 82 goals between them last season.
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That, combined with a baked-in defensive solidity and back-to-back wins over Parma and Genoa to start the season, has suddenly sparked debate in Italy over whether Juve should be in the Scudetto conversation after all, after a summer where Napoli or Inter were almost unanimously tipped for the title by pundits.
Saturday’s visit of their old rivals will go some way to answering that question. Inter arrive a wounded animal after their shock 2-1 defeat at home to Udinese before the break, and new rookie coach Christian Chivu has no shortage of doubters, including legendary Milan coach Arrigo Sacchi.
"You can’t understand if this team is Chivu’s or if it’s still [departed coach Simone] Inzaghi’s," Sacchi wrote after the Udinese game.
Inter will therefore head west to Piedmont with a burning desire to put things right and prove their title-fighting quality.
And this time, they will surely come with a plan to deal with Yildiz, the 20-year-old whom Italy’s most decorated club are building their future around.
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