Previous winners ranked by how good they actually became.
With Liverpool starlet Raheem Sterling the latest to collect the European Golden Boy award, CaughtOffside takes a look at previous winners of the award and ranks them in order of how well they actually ended up doing, from worst to best.
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Sterling no doubt looks a player of tremendous potential and seems a deserving winner of the award this year, with the 20-year-old playing a key role in Liverpool’s fine form last season whilst also impressing for England at this summer’s World Cup.
Still, it can be hard to tell at this age how well the best young players will end up doing for the rest of their career, with some of these examples below illustrating that perfectly…
11) Alexandre Pato
A rising star at AC Milan earlier in his career, Alexandre Pato’s career really hasn’t panned out the way it was expected to and the Brazilian striker is arguably the least successful winner of the Golden Boy award.
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10) Anderson
Narrowly ahead of Pato is Manchester United midfield flop Anderson, who had a very good first few seasons at Old Trafford and played his part in a highly successful period, though he has been horribly off form for a few years now.
9) Mario Balotelli
Winner in 2010, Mario Balotelli may still fulfill his amazing potential, but his attitude problems continue to hold him back and he is having a nightmare season for Liverpool since his £16m move from AC Milan in what has been a nomadic career so far.
8) Rafael van der Vaart
The first player to win the award all the way back in 2003, Rafael van der Vaart has not really ever come close to fulfilling all that promise seen in him as a youngster at Ajax. His time at Real Madrid was something of a failure and the best form of his career arguably came in a short spell at Tottenham Hotspur.
7) Paul Pogba
A very recent winner, it is hard to say exactly how well Paul Pogba will prove to do as a player, though he has certainly made a great start with two Serie A titles since his move to Juventus in 2012.
6) Isco
Another who is still in the early stages of his career, Real Madrid starlet Isco is still a very accomplished midfielder who already has a Champions League medal under his belt after a glorious season at the Bernabeu last year.
5) Mario Gotze
Scorer of Germany’s winner in the World Cup final over Argentina this summer, Mario Gotze has made great strides since winning the award back in 2011, having also shone brightly for Bayern Munich since his big-money move from rivals Borussia Dortmund.
4) Cesc Fabregas
One of the best midfielders in the world, Cesc Fabregas just needs more trophies at club level to ensure he is remembered as a true great. Still, the Spanish playmaker has been a consistently top performer for Arsenal, his national team and at new club Chelsea whom he joined after a slightly underwhelming three years at Barcelona.
3) Wayne Rooney
A player fast becoming a Premier League great, Wayne Rooney has won it all with Manchester United and continues to fire in the goals after raising his game since becoming club captain this season. Despite some views that the England international has not become the explosive talent he looked like being in his youth, he is still a very accomplished all-rounder with a great career to look back on.
2) Sergio Aguero
A two-time Premier League title winner with Manchester City and a player widely regarded as one of the best strikers in the world at the moment, there’s no doubt that Argentine hot-shot Sergio Aguero is building a terrific career for himself with a superb goals record and great flair and ability.
1) Lionel Messi
Far and away the most successful, 2005 European Golden Boy winner Lionel Messi has surpassed all expectations and become perhaps the greatest player of all time in an absolutely majestic career with Barcelona. The 27-year-old has won all there is to win at club level and broken numorous records along the way, as well as reaching the World Cup final with Argentina this summer.