What Happened To The 25 Wonderkids Called 'The Next Lionel Messi' Back In 2010

Lionel Messi has been the measuring stick in football for the last decade and a half - but 25 different players were tipped to emulate his success back in 2010.

The Barcelona superstar has carved out a legendary career and when all is said and done, he will be regarded as one of the greatest ever.

It naturally means that he has been the measuring stick ever since and in 2010, Bleacher Report took a shot at naming the heirs to his throne.

Fast forward a decade and the now 33-year-old Messi still rules the roost - but who were the players tipped to reach the top?

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Check out the entire list below along with which club they currently play for.

Pablo Piatti (Toronto FC)

Giannis Fetfatzidis (Al-Khor SC)

Sebastian Giovinco (Al Hilal)

Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain)

Pedro (Roma)

Erik Lamela (Tottenham Hotspur)

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Nicolas Lodeiro (Seattle Sounders)

Javier Pastore (Roma)

Sotiris Ninis (Volos)

Marko Marin (Al-Ahli)

Bryan Ruiz (Alajuelense)

Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona)

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Frank Acheampong (Tianjin Teda)

Jose Baxter (Memphis 901 FC)

Christian Eriksen (Inter Milan)

Bojan Krkic (Montreal Impact)

Kerlon (Retired)

Jean Carlos Chera (Retired)

Diego Buonanotte (Universidad Catolica)

Eduardo Salvio (Boca Juniors)

Alexis Sanchez (Inter Milan)

Reimond Manco (Binacional)

Nico Gaitan (Braga)

James Rodriguez (Everton)

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Matias Defederico (Club Agropecuario Argentino)

Some of these players have actually played with Messi at Barcelona, so were they that bad of shouts?

Pedro is a fellow La Masia graduate who spent seven years at the club, Neymar formed a third of the deadly 'MSN' trio while Philippe Coutinho is back at the Camp Nou after a resurgent season at Bayern Munich.

Alexis Sanchez also had a spell at Barcelona while Christian Eriksen was once seen as a top Premier League midfielder.

But as always, some players were doomed from the start due to the simple fact of being Argentinian, just like the six-time Ballon d'Or winner.

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Erik Lamela has had a solid career with Spurs in the Premier League but never hit elite heights.

Other Argentine wingers included are Pablo Piatti, Nico Gaitan and Eduardo Salvio.

Kerlon, who was most famous for his 'seal dribble', made the list and he has since retired from the game completely.

What do you think of the list? Are there any surprise players you had forgotten about?

Let us know in the comments.

Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Erik Lamela, Neymar, Lionel Messi

Daniel Marland

Daniel is a journalist for SPORTbible and he has previous experience with Manchester United. He has spoken to some of the biggest names in sport including Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch, WWE COO Triple H and WWE legend The Undertaker. May or may not do a decent impression of Jamie Carragher.

@DanMarland_