YOUTH Every year, British newspaper The Guardian publishes its NextGen list, an overview of the best 17-year-olds in the world of soccer. The list, which has now been announced, includes one Anderlecht player: Nathan De Cat, born in 2008.
De Cat is the only Belgian on the list, along with Jorthy Mokio from Ajax.
The Guardian describes him as follows: "The tall midfielder made his debut in the top flight for Anderlecht in April and scored in May, but few expected him to become such a fixture so quickly. De Cat was also one of the biggest stars at the 2025 U17 European Championship, where Belgium reached the semi-finals. Anderlecht coach Besnik Hasi put him in the starting line-up on the opening day of the 2025-26 season. “Nathan didn't make a single mistake,” Hasi said after De Cat provided an assist in a 5-2 victory. Since then, there has been no debate about his place in the team. He is a fighter, but also loves to dribble and is particularly fond of the Zidane turn. De Cat was born prematurely and used to be small, but is now 192 cm tall and still growing.
Source: © Internal source
