An Aston Villa star has been bizarrely backed to become the world's best player in the next few years and take over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the face of football.
It has felt like Kylian Mbappe has been waiting in the wings for his first Ballon d'Or for years now, with the Frenchmen still yet to finish in the top two of the award at age 25.
However, if football agent Craig Butler is to be believed, the PSG attacker is going to have to move aside for Villa winger Leon Bailey. Yes, Leon Bailey.
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Not to throw too much shade on Bailey, who is an extremely talented player but I'm not sure many would have had him in the same conversation as Ronaldo and Messi.
Speaking on the Up the Villa Podcast, Butler attempted to back up his claims.
“There is so much more to come. I don't think Leon has hit 40% of his potential yet. You've only seen 40 percent of what Leon can do. It's about the timing, I believe that one day he will be the best player in the world," He argued.
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Bailey has been terrific for Villa this season and has put a stamp of authority on his position, with eight goals and eight assists, which is four more G/A than summer signing Moussa Diaby.
"He'll keep getting better and better and one day he will be regarded as the best player in the world. Messi is getting older, Cristiano’s getting older, Neymar has injury problems and is getting older, [Kylian] Mbappe as well. Leon has no cap on his potential. You've not seen anything yet," Continued Butler.
The 26-year-old Jamaican winger has certainly shown world-class potential in his career so far, with his early years at Bayer Leverkusen perhaps promising more than he has delivered so far, but given his form this season he could be set to live up to the hype.
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Class baller? Yes. Best player in the world one day? Not so sure.
Topics: Aston Villa, Premier League, Football, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo
Tom Jenkins