What happened to the 10 wonderkids Sky Sports called the biggest 'breakthrough stars' of 2014
Sky Sports backed 10 wonderkids to become 'breakthrough stars'. Almost 10 years later, where are they now?
In 2014, Sky Sports named 10 players under the age of 21 to become a 'major force'
So, what happened to them? Well, SPORTbible took a look at the 10 players included in the list.
Doria
Doria was tipped to become the 'perfect' long-term centre-back partner to Thiago Silva following Brazil's crushing 7-1 defeat to Germany at the 2014 World Cup.
But Doria, now 30, failed to fulfil his early promise despite securing a move to Europe from Brazil's Botafogo. He joined Marseille though was unable to make a huge impression before returning home.
Oliver Torres
The Spanish midfielder was compared to Andres Iniesta when rising through the ranks at Atletico Madrid. He eventually broke into the first-team under Diego Simeone, making 33 appearances across all competitions in the 2015/16 season.
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However, in the subsequent summer, he was loaned out before securing a permanent move to Porto. The 30-year-old now plays his football at Sevilla.
Ryan Gauld
Gauld graduated from Dundee United's youth academy before joining Sporting CP in an eye-catching transfer. The Scottish attacking midfielder only played two games for Sporting's senior team as he had several loans spells during his time at the club.
He joined Vancouver Whitecaps in 2021 and has compiled over 100 appearances for the Canadian side that play in the MLS.
Lucas Piazon
Described as 'the poster boy of Chelsea's FFP-satisfying stockpiling methods', the Brazilian winger never made in at Chelsea, making just one Premier League appearance.
Being a youngster at Chelsea, naturally, he had plenty of loan spells away from Stamford Bridge. The 31-year-old now plays for Portuguese outfit AVS.
Richairo Zivkovic
Zivkovic was the youngest player on the list at just 17. He joined Ajax after turning down reported offers from Liverpool, Manchester City and Bayern Munich.
He scored just two goals for Ajax before leaving the club. The Dutch forward left Europe for China before returning in the shape of a loan move to Sheffield United in the 2019/20 season.
The latest transfer of his career saw him join Bangkok United.
Aymeric Laporte
Laporte burst onto the scene following his stellar defensive performances for Athletic Bilbao. His showings alerted Man City, who paid a staggering £57 million to lure him away from Spain.
The French-born defender made 180 appearances across all competitions for the Blues before signing for Al Nassr in the summer of 2023.
Max Meyer
Meyer shot to fame at Schalke and attracted interest from Chelsea and Liverpool. Despite interest elsewhere, the German attacking midfielder stayed at Schalke before leaving the club for Crystal Palace in the summer of 2018. He made 29 Premier League appearances in his debut campaign in England before returning to Germany in January 2021.
Meyer plies his trade in Switzerland with FC Luzern.
Domenico Berardi
Berrardi joined Juventus on a co-ownership basis after inspiring Sassuolo to promotion to Serie A, remaining at the club on a season-long loan.
But he never played a game for Juve as he returned to Sassuolo, where he currently plays. Berrardi featured in Italy's Euro 2020 triumph over England.
Adrien Rabiot
Rabiot was destined to enjoy a superstar career and, at 17, became the first homegrown player to sign a professional deal at Paris Saint-Germain following the arrival of Sheikh El-Khelaifi's billions.
The French midfielder left PSG for Juve before returning to France's top fight by signing for Marseille. He has been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United over the years.
Alen Halilovic
Dubbed as 'The Croatian Messi', Halilovic joined Barcelona for £1.8 million and big things were expected. But his career never took off, having only played one senior game for Barca.
He has played for a slew of clubs including Birmingham City and Reading. Now 28, the attacking midfielder plays for Dutch side Fortuna Sittard.
Topics: Adrien Rabiot, Aymeric Laporte, Football, Premier League, FC Barcelona
Nasir Jabbar