The rise of Joao Felix: From idolising Cristiano Ronaldo to partnering him at Al Nassr

Remember when Joao Felix was the hottest young player in Europe? At Benfica, he looked like he could do anything with a football. Then Atletico Madrid paid €126 million for him when he was just 19. Everyone thought he’d become a superstar. That was five years ago.

Today, he has signed for Al Nassr to play in Saudi Arabia alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, who at 40 is in the twilight of his career. So what happened?

Was it a mistake joining Atletico Madrid in the first place? Sometimes the biggest offer isn’t the right one. The price tag carried its weight. Later it proved that he wasn’t strong enough to carry that weight.

Diego Simeone is a great manager, but he’s probably not the right coach for a player like Felix. Simeone loves defensive football. His teams work hard, run a lot, and fight for every ball. Even attacking players have to do tremendous work off the ball. Felix wasn’t really up for it to the extent that Simeone demanded.

Modern football demands that from every player, whether with an attacking coach or a defensive coach. What if he had moved elsewhere? What if he had played in a more attacking team during the developing stage of his career?

At first, Felix showed some good moments at Atletico. But he was struggling to bring consistency to his game. For a player worth that much money, people expected more fight. After a few disappointing years, Atletico started loaning him out. First to Barcelona, didn’t work. Then Chelsea on loan and later on a permanent deal, same problem. Then AC Milan, another failure. Each club thought they could fix him, but nothing changed.

From Chelsea, he was planning to go back to his roots. Going back to Benfica seemed like his only option to start fresh. But then Saudi Arabia called. And it wasn’t just any Saudi club, according to Fabrizio Romano, Ronaldo personally asked him to come. When your childhood hero calls you, it’s hard to say no. Plus, the money was incredible.

Is this the right move? Maybe. His new coach, Jorge Jesus, is good with creative players. He understands that players like Felix are meant to entertain fans with their skills. And playing with Cristiano could teach him a lot about being professional and mentally strong.

Felix still has all the talent in the world. He can dribble, pass, and score when he wants to. The problem is consistency. He needs to work harder when his team doesn’t have the ball as well. At 25, there’s still time to turn his career around. Maybe Saudi Arabia will help him grow up as a player. Maybe playing with Cristiano will inspire him.

But his story shows young players an important lesson: don’t always take the biggest offer if money isn’t the only thing you are looking at. Sometimes you need to find the right fit first. Félix had everything at 19: talent, hype, and endless possibilities. But the million-pound question remains: was the first move right? Or was it only just hype about him?

He will be hoping to prove his doubters wrong in Saudi. In a World Cup year, he will be hoping that he has the opportunity to build a partnership with Ronaldo, which will be good for him and Portugal.