Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann believes either Jamal Musiala or Jude Bellingham should have beaten Gavi to the Kopa Trophy at Monday's Ballon d'Or ceremony.
The award – given to the best under-21 player in the world – went to a Barcelona midfielder for the second year in a row, as Gavi replicated Pedri's 2021 success.
Bundesliga duo Musiala and Bellingham were both in contention for the prize, finishing third and fourth in the voting respectively, with Real Madrid's Eduardo Camavinga coming second.
Asked about Musiala's failure to land the award ahead of Bayern's trip to Augsburg in the DFB-Pokal, Nagelsmann said: "You wear club glasses.
"In my eyes, both Jamal Musiala and Jude Bellingham have had better seasons than the winner. Gavi is an outstanding player, and I'm happy for him too."
No Bayern player has bettered Musiala's return of five league goals this season (level with Sadio Mane and Leroy Sane).
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund midfielder Bellingham last week followed Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland as just the third teenager to score in four consecutive Champions League appearances.
Attention for Bayern now turns to the DFB-Pokal, which they last won in 2020.
Their bid to go beyond the second round this season could be hamstrung by the absence of Manuel Neuer, but Nagelsmann is not prepared to take any risks with his shoulder injury.
"It's not a conscious pause. Anything in the shoulder area is unfavourable for a goalkeeper," the coach explained. "If you have a sharp pain, you can't react.
"He has pain when moving and is therefore restricted. As a goalkeeper, it's impossible to get 100 per cent performance then, so it doesn't make sense [to play Neuer]. It would be easier with an outfield player.
"We do everything in the necessary care for the players. We try everything to prevent this and consult all possible values. The rhythm is what it is. It's annoying when players are out and injured."
Nagelsmann also offered an update on the condition of Lucas Hernandez, who he hopes will recover from a muscle tear before the World Cup begins next month.
"It's looking better. We're making a bit more of him," Nagelsmann said of the defender. "We have to be patient. I can't say how long it will take.
"It hasn't been looking too good lately. He's making progress, but it's a tough injury. I hope he can play at the World Cup."
Raphinha hails Barcelona after statement win over Valladolid
Barcelona forward Raphinha believes the team have laid down a statement of their intent by starting the season with four straight wins in LaLiga.
Raphinha scored the first hat-trick of his career and also delivered two assists on Saturday, as Barca crushed Real Valladolid 7-0 at Camp Nou.
Hansi Flick's side already possess a four-point cushion at the top of the table after also recording victories over Valencia, Athletic Bilbao and Rayo Vallecano.
Raphinha believes their results have demonstrated the club got things right in the transfer market, telling Movistar: "Today's game has shown that there is no need for anyone else to come. We are very happy because of that.
"We are in very good shape. The team is working hard. Today's result shows what we are working for.
"We saw that the coach was on the sidelines asking for more goals and that's our mentality.
"We are hungry and want to score as many goals as we can. When we are dominant like we have been, the best way to respect our rivals is not taking the foot off the gas."
Raphinha was one of the players who faced criticism during Barca's trophyless 2023-24 campaign and was rumoured to be on his way out ahead of the new season.
The Blaugrana again battled financial restrictions throughout the window, allowing Ilkay Gundogan to leave in order to secure the registration of new arrival Dani Olmo.
With his future now certain, Raphinha is keen to nail down a starting spot and contribute on a regular basis.
"I don't know if today's was my best game, but it's certainly among my best. I will try to play even better and as much as I can," the Brazilian said.
"I'm very happy to be able to help the team. I feel good. I knew that this season would be very important for me. I'm looking for my best version to help my team-mates and be more confident."
Barcelona 7-0 Real Valladolid: Raphinha hat-trick helps hosts to emphatic triumph
Raphinha's first career hat-trick helped Barcelona remain perfect in LaLiga as they thumped Real Valladolid 7-0 at Camp Nou.
A commanding display saw Barcelona enter the international break top of the table as Hansi Flick became the first head coach of the club to win each of his first four league games in charge since 2017-18.
Brazilian Raphinha opened the scoring with 20 minutes on the clock, beating Karl Hein with a deft finish after being picked out by Pau Cubarsi.
The hosts entered the interval with a three-goal advantage as Robert Lewandowski struck his fourth of the season before Jules Kounde picked out the top corner in the second minute of added time.
Raphinha grabbed his second of the game just after the hour, completing his maiden treble eight minutes later with another fine finish.
Dani Olmo later marked his home debut with his second goal in as many games for his new club, with Raphinha then turning provider for Ferran Torres to complete the emphatic display.
Data Debrief: Seventh heaven for Barcelona
Raphinha's treble was the first of his career across Europe's top five leagues, scoring two goals for the second time for Barcelona, having done so in April 2024 against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Lamine Yamal, meanwhile, has now been involved in 14 goals in 42 appearances in LaLiga (six goals and eight assists), the most by a player before turning 18 in the competition in the 21st century, surpassing Bojan Krkic (13 - 10 goals and three assists).
It also marked Barcelona's biggest win in a LaLiga match since since April 2016 against Deportivo La Coruna at Riazor (8-0) and their biggest home win in the competition since March 2014 against Osasuna (also 7-0).
Werder Bremen 0-0 Borussia Dortmund: Schlotterbeck sent off as BVB are held
Borussia Dortmund were held to a 0-0 draw at Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Defender Nico Schlotterbeck was sent off for Dortmund in the second half and Nuri Sahin’s side ultimately had to settle for a point.
After an underwhelming start to the match, the visitors were more aggressive following the interval, with substitute Karim Adeyemi making an instant impact with an effort from more than 20 yards out. But Bremen goalkeeper Michael Zetterer was in place to deny the forward.
Dortmund were reduced to 10 men in the 73rd minute when centre-back Schlotterbeck received a second yellow card for sliding in on Bremen forward Justin Njinmah.
BVB still pushed for a winner despite their numerical disadvantage, but a solid Bremen defence withstood late pressure to secure a point at home.
Data Debrief: Defences on top
Neither side can claim they were hugely unfortunate not to have scored, with Dortmund’s expected goals (xG) total of 0.61 only coming in marginally ahead of the hosts (0.41).
BVB did have four shots on target, although all four came from the 58th minute onwards with two of them from substitutes in Adeyemi and Donyell Malen, while Bremen only tested Gregor Kobel – who now has two straight clean sheets – on one occasion.
It was Marvin Ducksch who had the hosts’ only shot on target in his 100th Bundesliga appearance, the first six of which came as a Dortmund player.
The result means Bremen end a run of four straight home defeats to Dortmund in Bundesliga play, although they have now gone nine such matches without a victory.
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