Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Gabriel Jesus were named the top three for the 2017 Golden Boy award on Saturday.
Paris Saint-Germain's Mbappe and Barcelona forward Dembele were considered the leading contentders for the honour, which is handed to the best under-21 player in Europe.
Manchester City's Jesus also made the cut as the 25-man shortlist for the award, run by Italian newspaper Tuttosport and voted for by a panel of journalists, was narrowed down to the leading trio.
Mbappe led the way as Monaco claimed the Ligue 1 title last season before his switch – initially on loan – to PSG.
Dembele enjoyed a fine Bundesliga campaign with Borussia Dortmund and made the move to Barca for a reported €105million in August, only for a hamstring injury to sideline him with the LaLiga giants.
Last year's winner Renato Sanches and Manchester United star Marcus Rashford were among those missing out on a spot in the final three.
