Voted the Hyundai Young Player at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™, France midfielder Paul Pogba collected his award at the Paris Motor Show on Wednesday. Fresh from having helped Les Bleus to a 3-0 friendly win over Armenia on Tuesday, Pogba made his way to the Hyundai stand, where the South Korean carmaker has just launched its latest model, the i20.
The young French star was presented with his award by Sung Jun Kim, the President of Hyundai Motor France. Looking on proudly was his mother Yeo Moriba. As is usually the case, the in-demand Pogba reacted with a smile to the clamour that his public appearances invariably generate. Willing to meet every demand made of him, he happily posed for photos and signed autographs for the many fans who had made the trip to see their idol.
Still only 21, the Juventus midfielder has become an essential part of Didier Deschamps’ team and made a massive contribution to Les Bleus’ run to the quarter-finals at Brazil 2014, opening the scoring for his side in their Round-of-16 defeat of Nigeria. The award is a richly deserved one for a player who continues to impress and displays a maturity beyond his years.
“I’m very proud to receive this award and it was an honour for me to play in the World Cup,” he told FIFA.com.
Formerly with Le Havre and Manchester United, Pogba has made a name for himself in his two seasons at Juventus and also led Les Bleuets to glory at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey 2013.
Posing proudly alongside the statuette, he spoke of his determination to achieve even more success: “I can’t predict what’s going to happen in the future but I’m going to do all I can to win even more trophies. I’m going to keep on working hard. My aim is to become the best player in the world.”
Having achieved the very same individual distinction as the likes of Pele, Franz Beckenbauer, Michael Owen and Thomas Muller before him, the Hyundai Young Player Award should give the talented young Frenchman all the encouragement he needs to push on with his objective of being the best.