Nico Paz Named Serie A Young Player of the Year, and Fabio Capello Questions Real Madrid: "I Don't Understand Why They Decided to Sell Him"

Some awards are won purely on numbers, while others come with an extra layer to them. Nico Paz's honor had both. The Argentine was named Serie A Young Player of the Year for 2025/2026 at the Gran Gala del Calcio, the ceremony that brings together the biggest names in Italian soccer each season, this time held at Milan's Teatro alla Scala.

The award already carried plenty of weight given what Paz's season at Como had meant. But the person who walked on stage to present it added another layer to the night: Fabio Capello, one of the most important coaches in the history of Italian soccer, with stints at Milan, Roma, Juventus and also Real Madrid, was the one tasked with honoring him. And he didn't hold back.

Capello, without getting into the internal reasons behind the decision, offered a reflection that struck a chord with everyone in the room:

I don't understand why Real Madrid decided to sell himFabio Capello

The comment lands hard because it comes from someone who knows the inner workings of Real Madrid firsthand. Paz came up through the Spanish club's youth academy and ended up at Como, where he found the playing time and prominence that weren't guaranteed to him in Madrid.

A recognition Paz was especially grateful for

On the other side of the stage, the player himself didn't hide what it meant to receive the trophy from those particular hands. After the presentation, he was clear about how he felt:

It's an honor to receive this award from a legend of soccerNico Paz

The individual award didn't come out of nowhere. It follows a season in which Paz also made a name for himself among Serie A's top attacking players. The Argentine finished among the league's leading scorers and was included in the Serie A 2025/2026 Team of the Season, with 12 goals to his name. For context, the season's top scorer was Lautaro Martinez, with 17 goals.

For an attacking midfielder with only a handful of seasons in top level European soccer to finish alongside the league's most productive forwards says a lot about the year he had at Como. It also helps explain, at least in part, why Capello chose not to stay quiet about the question many in Italy have been asking ever since the Argentine left Real Madrid.