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The youngsters who reached stardom: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Pele and Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney of Manchester United and Cristiano Ronaldo celebrate during the 2005 derby
Image: Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo played for Man Utd as teenagers

As Barcelona and Real Madrid target a move for Kylian Mbappe, we look at 10 former teen sensations who have gone on to great success.

French outlet L'Equipe is reporting that the 18-year-old striker has told Monaco that he wants to leave the club to further his career and Barcelona are said to be showing a strong interest.

They are set to have £198m to burn with the sale of Neymar and could scupper the plans of Clasico rivals Real Madrid, who have been heavily linked to the France striker, with Man City also said to be tracking him.

Why Mbappe is worth it
Why Mbappe is worth it

Monaco's Kylian Mbappe could cost big money but why is he so in demand?

With Mbappe one of the most exciting teenage talents around, we take a look at 10 players who excelled as youngsters and went on to have hugely successful careers...

Michael Owen

Owen, who scored on his debut against Wimbledon in May 1997, burst onto the scene during the 1997/98 season at the age of 18 as he replaced an injured Robbie Fowler in attack for Liverpool, eventually winning the Premier League Golden Boot and the PFA Young Player of the Year award.

Michael Owen broke into the Liverpool side as a 17-year-old in 1997
Image: Michael Owen broke into the Liverpool side as a 17-year-old in 1997

But his most memorable game that season came during the 1998 World Cup against Argentina. He was fouled in the area by Roberto Ayala to win an equalising penalty for England - which was converted by Alan Shearer - before scoring a sublime solo goal, curling home from outside the box.

While England inevitably lost on penalties, Owen cemented himself as a true talent and his exploits at the time made him the country's youngest World Cup goalscorer at the age of 18 years and 190 days. He also won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award at the end of 1998.

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Owen spent eight seasons with Liverpool, netting 158 goals and winning six trophies, before spells at Real Madrid and Newcastle. He also spent three years at Manchester United, where he won three titles including the Premier League.

Robbie Fowler

Another prolific Liverpool striker, Fowler made his senior Reds debut in September 1993 at the age of 18 and went on to score 13 times in his first 15 games, including a five-goal haul during a League Cup fixture against Fulham on his second first-team appearance - and a hat-trick against Southampton in only his fifth Premier League outing.

Robbie Fowler Liverpool Arsenal Anfield 1994
Image: Robbie Fowler scored one of the fastest hat-tricks in Premier League history as a teenager

But it was in the 1994/95 season that the then 19-year-old really came into his own, playing in all 57 competitive matches for Liverpool and scoring a hat-trick in four minutes and 33 seconds against Arsenal, which was a 20-year record until it was broken by Sadio Mane - playing for Southampton - against Aston Villa in 2015. Fowler also helped the Reds secure the League Cup that season, which was one of five trophies he won in his first spell at Liverpool.

Dubbed 'God' during his time at Anfield, he returned to the club in January 2006 for an 18-month stint after spending time at Leeds and Man City, and finished with 183 goals in 369 appearances for Liverpool. He would go on to feature for Cardiff City and Blackburn as well as clubs in Australia and Thailand before announcing his retirement in January 2015.

Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney (Everton to Man United for £25m, 2004): Once the most-expensive teenager ever, Rooney has scored 216 goals in 442 games, winning 12 trophies.
Image: Wayne Rooney was once the most-expensive teenager in world football

On October 19, 2002, a 16-year-old Rooney scored in the last minute for Everton as they beat Arsenal 2-1 and ended the Gunners' 30-match unbeaten run. In the process, he became the youngest scorer in the Premier League at the time just five days before his 17th birthday, and would go on to be named the 2002 BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year and sign his first professional deal with the Toffees in January 2003.

But in August 2004 Rooney left his boyhood club when Manchester United paid £25.6m for the then-18-year-old, which was the highest fee paid for a teenager at the time.

He made his United debut at Old Trafford on September 28 in a 6-2 Champions League win against Fernabache, scoring a hat-trick and picking up an assist, and ended his first season as the club's top scorer as well as winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award.

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With Wayne Rooney returning to Goodison Park we take a look at some of his best goals in an Everton shirt

Rooney would go on to break multiple records, becoming United's record scorer with 253 goals in 559 appearances and also holds the all-time scorer record for England (53) as well as the highest number of caps for an outfield player (119) after making his debut at 17 years and 111 days old.

In total, Rooney won 16 trophies with United, including five Premier League titles and the Champions League, and has now returned to his boyhood club, Everton.

Lionel Messi

10 March, 2007 - Barcelona 3 Real Madrid 3: One of the best clashes of recent memory saw Lionel Messi bag a hat-trick - the first Clasico treble since 1995
Image: Lionel Messi's talent was clear from the off at Barcelona

It was in the 2003/04 season that Messi began his rapid rise through the Barcelona ranks, debuting for no fewer than five sides including the first team at 16 years and 157 days old in a friendly against Porto in November 2003.

His performance was so impressive that he began training with the senior squad once a week, with former winger Ludovic Giuly remembering one of Messi's training sessions with Frank Rijkaard's side, telling Sport: "He destroyed us all in a training session.. Every play he made was dangerous. It was incredible. He would dribble past four players and score a goal… He was an alien. He killed us all."

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We look back to the 3-3 El Clasico draw in 2007, where a young Lionel Messi made the headlines by grabbing a hat trick at the Nou Camp

But it was at the age of 19 that he captured the imagination on the world stage, as he scored 17 goals in 36 games across all competitions in the 2006/07 season - which could have been more if he had not been hampered by injury - and became the first player in 12 years to score a Clasico hat-trick, doing so during a 3-3 draw in March 2007.

Today, Messi is regularly credited with being one of the best footballers in the world with a host of individual awards - including the most Ballon d'Or awards (5) - and with Barcelona, so far winning eight La Liga and four Champions League titles.

Cristiano Ronaldo

The man who regularly rivals Messi, Ronaldo also made his debut in five Sporting Lisbon teams at the age of 16, but it was when he signed for Manchester United in 2003 as an 18-year-old for a fee of £12.24m - an English record for a teenager at the time - that he started to attract real attention.

Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United takes on football-ace-turned-Breeders' Cup trainer, Markus Munch, then playing for Panathinaikos in 2003.
Image: Cristiano Ronaldo joined Man Utd at the age of 18

He made his Premier League debut in August 2003, replacing Nicky Butt in the 60th minute during a 4-0 win against Bolton, with his performance garnering praise from United legend George Best, who said in an interview with writer Justyn Barnes: "[It] was undoubtedly the most exciting debut performance I've ever seen... There have been a few players described as 'the new George Best' over the years, but this is the first time it's been a compliment to me."

The current Ballon d'Or holder spent six years at Old Trafford - where he won nine trophies - before moving to Real Madrid in 2009, winning a further 11 titles to date including back-to-back Champions League wins. He also captained Portugal to Euro 2016 glory.

Cesc Fabregas

Fabregas arrived at Arsenal's academy from Barcelona in September 2003, and it was not long before he was making appearances for the first team. He remains the youngest player to debut for the senior side when he played in a League Cup game against Rotherham in October 2003 at the age of 16 years and 177 days.

Lehmann was not the only addition that summer, of course. Cesc Fabregas joined as a youth product from Barcelona, but more on him later...
Image: Cesc Fabregas excelled as a teenager with Arsenal

But it was not until the 2004/05 season that he began to play for the Gunners in the Premier League on a regular basis with injuries to Patrick Vieira, Edu and Gilberto Silva giving him his chance and he impressed with his performances. In the following season at the age of 18, he was handed the No 4 shirt which had been vacated by Vieira, making 49 appearances in all competitions and playing in every league match in the 2006/07 campaign.

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We look at who is most likely to replace Neymar at Barcelona, and it's good news for Liverpool fans

Fabregas continues to hold the record of the youngest ever Arsenal player to score for the club as well as the youngest to net in the Premier League, Europe and the League Cup. He won two trophies with the Gunners - the FA Cup and Community Shield - before moving back to Barcelona in the summer of 2011. The World Cup winner now plays for Chelsea, where he has won two Premier League titles

Ronaldo

Before Cristiano, there was another superstar Ronaldo - 'Brazilian Ronaldo' as he is more commonly known these days. He made his debut in May 1993 as a 16-year-old with Brazilian club Cruzeiro, netting 44 goals in 47 games during his short time with the side which saw him selected for the 1994 World Cup although he did not play.

8 Jun 1997:  Ronaldo of Brazil (right) competes with Fabio Cannavaro of Italy during the match in the Tournoi De France in Lyon, France. The game was drawn
Image: Ronaldo made his Brazil debut at the age of 17, going on to win 98 caps

It was after the tournament that the 17-year-old joined PSV Eindhoven, where he scored 30 league goals in his first season and won the Eredivisie Golden Boot. Ronaldo's 1995/96 campaign was mostly hampered by a knee injury - which would reoccur throughout his career - but he still managed 12 goals in 13 league appearances.

He went on to play with top clubs around Europe, including Barcelona, Inter Milan and Real Madrid but perhaps his greatest achievement was winning the 2002 World Cup with Brazil, during which he won the Golden Boot after scoring eight times and was named as the tournament final's man of the match.

Pele

Brazilian footballer Pele in training for Brazil's match against England.    (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
Image: Pele was a teenage sensation with Santos, making his debut at 15-years-old

Regularly regarded as the best footballer in history, Pele made his debut at the age of 15 with Brazilian side Santos, where he spent the majority of his career, in September 1956 and scored his first professional goal against Corinthians Santo Andre during a 7-1 victory.

The following season, at the age of 16, he became the highest scorer in the Campeonato Paulista and holds the record for the most goals scored in the league when he netted 58 times in 1958, paving the way for a call-up to the Brazil squad for the World Cup that year.

Pele is to auction his own copy of the Jules Rimet trophy
Image: The Brazilian won the World Cup three times

Pele still holds the record for the youngest player to score at the tournament at 17 years and 239 days, and the youngest to play in a final 10 days later. Brazil won the 1958 World Cup with the forward remaining the youngest player to lift the trophy and score in the final as they beat Sweden 5-2.

He would go on to win two further World Cup titles with Brazil, and won a total of 24 trophies while at Santos to truly cement his status as a legend of the game.

Patrick Kluivert

AC Milan players challenge Patrick Kluivert in the 1995 Champions League final
Image: AC Milan players challenge Patrick Kluivert in the 1995 Champions League final

Kluivert was part of Ajax's 'golden generation' in the 1990s, making his debut as an 18-year-old in August 1994 and scoring his first goal as Ajax beat Feyenoord in the Dutch Supercup. He was the club's top scorer as Louis Van Gaal's side surged to the 1994/95 Eredivisie title during an unbeaten season, netting 18 goals in 25 appearances.

But perhaps the most memorable moment of Kluivert's teenage years came in the 1995 Champions League final when he came off the bench in the 85th minute to score the winning goal as Ajax beat AC Milan 1-0 in Vienna. He remains the youngest player to score in a final of the competition at the age of 18 years and 328 days.

Kluivert went on to play for AC Milan, Barcelona and Newcastle and won nine trophies in his club career.

Sergio Aguero

Atletico Madrid forward Sergio Aguero (L) vies with Real Madrid's defender Sergio Ramos during their Spanish League football match in November 2009
Image: Sergio Aguero was Atletico Madrid's main striker when he was 19-years-old

Aguero made his debut for Independiante as a 15-year-old in July 2003, and holds the record for the youngest player to appear in the Primera Division which he took over from his former father-in-law, Diego Maradona. He was also the youngest player to feature in the Copa Libertadores at 16 years old, a record he held for three years.

He came to the attention of European fans when he made a €23m (£20.6m) move to Atletico Madrid in May 2006 at the age of 18 but it was not until the 2007/08 season where he truly made an impact as he took over the main striker role from Fernando Torres, who had moved to Liverpool. He ended the season as La Liga's third highest scorer with 19 goals and helped Atleti to Champions League qualification for the first time in over 10 years.

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After winning the U20 World Cup with Argentina in 2005 and 2007, Aguero made his first-team debut in the intermittent year at the age of 18 and helped his country with four goals as they qualified for the 2010 World Cup. The striker has gone on to win two Premier League titles with Man City and scored a famous trophy-winning goal against QPR during his debut 2011/12 season.

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