Lamine Yamal turns 17. What did the big stars do at their age?
Lamine Yamal turns 17. What did the big stars do at their age?
1/15CHEMA KING
February, 15Leo MessiThe Argentine showed incredible projection at 17 years old. He took his first steps in the Barça first team together with Ronaldinho, Eto’o, Deco and Saviola, with whom he formed a historic attack. He played as a striker on the right side and did not move from there. At 17, he was already driving defenders crazy, and at 17, he scored his first official goal against Albacete.MIGUEL RUIZ
3/15Cristiano RonaldoThe Portuguese star began his career with Portuguese side Sporting in 2002, aged 17. Within a season, he had wowed Europe and convinced Sir Alex Ferguson to become Manchester United’s number one target, the club that signed him in the summer of 2003.BRAND FILE
April 15Robert LewandowskiThe Kühle striker changed clubs several times in his youth before settling in Dortmund as one of the best strikers in Europe. At 17, Levi played for the Legia reserves in the 2005–06 season.LEGIUM
5/15Kylian MbappeReal’s new signing was already in the starting lineup for Monaco at the age of 17. With a score of 16-17 (he turned 18 in December), Kylian won Ligue 1 with Monaco and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.GETTY IMAGES
15.06.Erling HaalandThe Manchester City striker played for Molde at the age of 17, a team where he scored 20 goals in two seasons between 2017 and 2018. He then signed for RB Salzburg in 18-19, where he began to make a name for himself.BRAND FILE
7/15Harry KaneAt 17, Kane was an unknown. He was already playing for Tottenham Hotspur, where he is one of the most beloved players in its history. Without a place in the first team of the club that formed him from the age of eleven, he was loaned out to several clubs, and it was not until 2015 that he settled down.BRAND FILE
August 15Eden HazardThe Belgian genius took his first steps in Lille. He was far from the idol he would become years later with the Belgian national team and Chelsea, but he showed talent when he alternated between the reserves and the first team. At 17, in November 2008, he made his debut for the national team.BRAND FILE
September 15thRaul GonzalezThe Real Madrid legend made his debut for the Merengue team at the age of 17, in a match against Zaragoza. Very young and with Butragueño as a rival for the centre-forward position, he gradually took over the position.REAL MADRID
10/15David VillaAnother Spanish star, “Guajé”, has yet to make his debut in professional football. He played for Langreo’s youth team until he was 17, and at that age he signed for Sporting de Gijón’s youth team.
11/15/2018Bojan KrkicAt 17, Bojan had just made his debut in the main Barcelona team. The Barça club placed a big bet on him. He still holds the title of the best scorer of the Barça youth team, and has even been compared to Messi.ALEJANDRO GARCIA
December 15Arjen RobbenThe Dutch star made his debut for Groningen shortly before turning 17 in December 2000. He signed for PSV the following season but remained on loan at Groningen and scored six goals as a starter in the Eredivisie.GRONINGEN
13/15Diego MaradonaThe Argentine idol entered the Argentine first division at the age of 17. He had a long way to go and was already showing details of his unrivaled talent.BRAND FILE
14/15PeleAt 17, he became a recognised player for Santos, and in the summer of 1958, a few months before he turned 18, he won his first World Cup.BRAND FILE
15/15Johan CruyffCruyff made his debut for Ajax at the age of 17 and still had a long way to go to become a legend of Dutch football and one of the most influential figures in the sport.BRAND FILE