In the world of football, there is constant talk about the most talented and promising football players who are soon expected to become the brightest stars of this sport. Since 2003, the most talented player in the world has been awarded the "Golden Boy" award, which is open to all footballers aged 20 or younger.
But do all the players who receive this award go on to become the brightest stars of world football? As the announcement of the 2017 "Golden Boy" winner approaches, Eurofootball.com decided to look into how the careers of all the players who have won this award have developed and which famous players were playing at that time but failed to win this title.
Previous articles discussed:
2003 - Rafael van der Vaart; 2004 - Wayne Rooney; 2005 - Lionel Messi; 2006 - Cesc Fabregas; 2007 - Sergio Aguero; 2008 - Anderson; 2009 - Alexandre Pato.
The next part of this article will be continued next week.
2010: Mario Balotelli
Former Team: Manchester City
Current Team: Nice
Mario Balotelli, the son of two immigrants from Ghana who was born in Italy, but lived with his family for a short time. When he was only three, his parents could not afford his medical bills, so he was placed in a children's home, from which he was later adopted by Silvia and Francesco Balotelli. Interestingly, the new family did not legally adopt Mario, so he had to wait until his 18th birthday to receive Italian citizenship, despite living his entire life in Italy. Nevertheless, the player uses his adoptive parents' surname.
"I am Italian, I feel Italian, and I will play for the Italian national team my whole life," Balotelli said when he acquired Italian citizenship.
However, Mario did not have to wait to reach adulthood to make a name for himself in the football world. Starting his career at a small club like Lumezzane, the striker stood out from a young age due to his physical attributes. At just 15 years old, he had already made his debut in the first team, which played in the third division of Italian football. After playing just two matches in that team, Balotelli decided it was time to move to a much stronger team.
The first Italian football club to try out this talent was Barcelona. However, the Catalan team, after reviewing, decided not to offer a contract to the 15-year-old. A completely different impression was left on the managers of Inter - they initially agreed with the player's former club on a one-year loan and for 150,000 euros acquired 50% of the player's rights, and a year later, for an additional 190,000 euros, they bought out the remaining rights to the player.
Although he spent the following year in the Inter youth team, Balotelli's talent did not go unnoticed. At just 17, he was already invited to the national team by the coach of the Ghanaian team, but the footballer declined any opportunities to play for that team, publicly showing his love for Italy.
In the summer of 2007, the striker got the first opportunities to represent the main Inter team in friendly matches. The player took advantage of his opportunities very well, and after a few months, the team's coaches gave him the chance to debut in the Serie A championship. Although he did not stand out in the match on December 16, just three days later, the team included him in the starting lineup for the Italian Cup match against Reggina, and the young talent repaid the trust by scoring two goals. Balotelli finished the season after playing 15 matches and scoring 7 goals and won the Italian league championship with Inter. The Italian Cup match between Juventus and Inter, in which Balotelli scored two goals:
Despite his shining performances in the main Inter team, the fans of this team were not too excited about his prospects. The reason was simple - having been given the opportunity, the Italian did not hesitate to admit that he supported the opposing team Milan.
Despite the victory in the Serie A championship, Inter left the first opportunities to be part of the main team for Mario Balotelli, giving him to Roberto Mancini, while the team's coach was Jose Mourinho. Although at the beginning of the following season the Italian became the youngest player in this team to score in the Champions League, the Portuguese coach was not thrilled with his attitude towards work.
"In my understanding of football, a young player like him cannot afford to train less than veterans like Figo, Cordoba or Zanetti", the coach said at the time.
During the season, the conflicts between the player and J. Mourinho only escalated, and already remembering those years after a couple of years, the coach stated that the Italian was simply uncontrollable. After the draw with Roma, the Portuguese commented on the team's performance, saying that the young striker's rating for the match was very close to zero.
In December, after a draw with Roma, being dissatisfied with the tough Jerome Boateng's actions in defense against him, the striker started a fight, and his team had to be held back during the mass brawl involving almost all players from both teams.
