The Norwegian looks to have chosen the Bernabeu…
Norwegian wonderkid Martin Odegaard has chosen to join Real Madrid, according to Drammens Tidende. However, it is not guaranteed that he will be a success at Los Blancos.
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Here are eight other players who were touted as the next big thing when they were younger, only for it to all go wrong with the pressure on.
Freddy Adu
From the age of 12, Adu was touted as being the next big thing. It was even hoped that he might help to grow football in America through his performances. Eventually he made a move to Benfica, but went on to only make 11 appearances for the club in four years. He is now 25, and without a club.
Bojan Krkic
He broke Lionel Messi’s record as the youngest player to play for Barcelona in La Liga, and looked set to follow in the Argentine’s footsteps. However, Bojan never managed to recreate his youth squad form in the first team. He was loaned out to sides such as AC Milan, AS Roma and Ajax, before ending up permanently at Stoke City. The 24-year-old has shown some signs of rebuilding his career at the Potters.
Chris Kirkland
After moving to Liverpool for £6 million in 2001, a lot was expected of Kirkland. Some even had him nailed down as a certain to be the next England number one. However, injuries held him back, and he slipped down the division to sides such as West Bromwich Albion and Wigan Athletic, before eventually ending up at Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship. The 33-year-old is still with the Owls now.
Fran Merida
Arsenal went to a lot of trouble to sign the Merida from Barcelona when he was a youngster, with the player actually ending up having to pay a fine to the Catalan club for failing to honour a pre-contract with the side. Despite this, the Spaniard did not impress for the North London club and eventually ended up at Atletico Madrid. He failed again there, and is now without a club after being released by Brazilian team Atletico Paranaense.
Francis Jeffers
Before Wayne Rooney, Everton produced another promising striker in Francis Jeffers. After a fine start at the Toffees, he earned an £8 million move to Arsenal in 2001. However, he never made an impact at the Gunners, and has since made his way down the leagues. Most recently the 33-year-old was released by Accrington Stanley.
Giovanni dos Santos
Similar to Bojan in that he seemed like yet another great player to be created by Barcelona, the Mexican has struggled when he moved to Tottenham. He has since been very successful for his national team and relatively so in La Liga, but has never reached the heights he did when he scored a hat trick in his final appearance for the Blaugranas.
James Vaughan
Another striker from Everton, and this time it was in the post-Rooney era. As a youngster he blew away all of the England captain’s records at the club, such as youngest scorer and youngest to make an appearance for the side. However, a series of injuries robbed him of his pace, and he has ended up being sold to Norwich City. Now 26, the former England under 21 international is plying his trade at Huddersfield Town.
Jonathan Woodgate
When in his teenage days the centre-back was a great player for Leeds United, and eventually got a big move to Real Madrid via Newcastle United. However, injuries have since plagued the defender, and he has been unable to live up to his promise. The 34-year-old is now at Middlesbrough in the Championship.