Dubai: Some fulfilled their potential and went on to be superstars, others’ talents burned out quickly and they were doomed to obscurity — the varied fates of the winners of the Fifa Under-17 World Cup Golden Ball award make for interesting reading.
Spain’s Cesc Fabregas, who was named best player at the 2003 tournament in Finland, has won the senior World Cup, two European Championships, the La Liga title and is one of the most famous footballers in the world. Scotland goalkeeper James Will, on the other hand, was hardly seen again after his moment of glory in 1989.
And that’s without mentioning Ghana’s Nii Lamptey. He outshone the likes of Argentina’s Juan Sebastian Veron and Italy’s Alessandro del Piero to win the 1991 Golden Ball, but after a nomadic career he is best known by some fans as one of the top talents to ever grace the Championship/Football Manager computer game series.
The Arab world tasted success in 1995, when Oman’s Mohammad Al Kathiri was the best player in Ecuador, but now the Salalah-born star’s Wikipedia entry is tellingly brief.
French attacker Florent Sinama Pongolle won a big move to Liverpool in England after his success in 2001, but he has never really lived up to his potential and now plays for Rostov in Russia with just one senior national team cap to his name.
But in recent years Under-17 Golden Ball success has gone on to lead to bigger things. Aside from Barcelona’s Fabregas, American Landon Donovan (1999 winner) has enjoyed a long and successful career with the national team and clubs on either side of the Atlantic, while Brazil’s Anderson (2005) has spent six years with English champions Manchester United and Toni Kroos (2007) is a key member of the Germany and Bayern Munich midfields.
Players from 24 countries are now in the UAE for the 2013 World Cup, bidding to help their teams to glory and along the way take the first step towards becoming the next Fabregas.
