A decade ago, Cristiano Ronaldo named five players he believed could dominate world football – but only one of his picks is still playing at the top.
The 39-year-old, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, started out at Sporting Lisbon before rising to prominence during his first spell at Manchester United.
He then began an on-pitch rivalry with Barcelona forward Lionel Messi during his time in La Liga with Real Madrid, followed by a second stint at Juventus, United and Al Nassr, where he currently plays. .
There was a time when Ronaldo was considered one of the top wonder kids of football, later his generation was overshadowed by him and Messi.
That era is now coming to an end, with players like Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal, Vinicius Junior and Erling Haaland now beginning to take over as the top players in world football.
In 2015, Ronaldo gave his views on who he thought could lead in the coming years – and while some of the names he gave have since achieved significant success, others have been less fortunate.
in a sit-down interview with bt sportThe Portuguese forward started strongly and named his then Real Madrid teammate Martin Odegaard as a player he believed could shine.
Aged 16 at the time, the midfielder joined Los Blancos from Norwegian side Strømsgodset.
It is at Arsenal where he is fulfilling that potential by becoming a first-team regular under Mikel Arteta.
During the interview, Ronaldo warned, “He has a good future ahead of him. We need to give him time to learn, to make his best decisions. But I see a lot of potential in this player, he has a good left foot.”
Ronaldo and Odegaard were teammates at Real Madrid. Image Credit: Getty
Ronaldo singled out Eden Hazard, who had recently won the Premier League title with Chelsea and won the league’s player of the season award.
The Belgian replaced Ronaldo at Real, but endured four injury-hit seasons at the Bernabeu, scoring only seven goals in 76 appearances.
After being released from his contract the previous summer, Hazard announced his retirement from football at the age of 32.
Ronaldo also singled out Paul Pogba, the Juventus midfielder, for being named in UEFA’s Team of the Year in early 2016.
Following a club-record move to Manchester United, the Frenchman won two trophies in his first season, but things eventually went sour at Old Trafford and he rejoined Juventus.
He is currently a free agent after Juventus agreed to terminate his contract in November last year.
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Pogba is currently a free agent. Image Credit: Getty
Ronaldo’s fourth choice was Memphis Depay, who took Ronaldo’s old number seven shirt upon his arrival at United in the summer of 2015.
He was hardly successful at United, but found top form at Lyon and moved to Barcelona in the summer of 2021. The Dutchman now plays for Brazilian side Corinthians.
Ultimately, Ronaldo chose then-Barcelona forward Neymar as one of his future football stars.
While this is hardly the most surprising selection, given the Brazilian’s rise to football stardom already up to this point, it appears that the winger will continue to dominate world football for years to come.
It didn’t work out that way after he moved to PSG with a world record, with the aim of eventually getting Neymar his first Ballon d’Or.
After failing to add to the Champions League title he won with Barça, he joined Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal for a fee of £86 million.