Next Messi: Lionel Messi is among the world most recognizable names in the football history and most people believe that he is the world greatest player to have ever played the game of football.

Messi has left an impression that hardly anyone can do that many peole thinks about Ronaldo but Linoel Messi Class is different. His special combination of talent, pace, and lethal scoring makes many people fear that no other person can be able to reproduce his performance and impact on the sport.

However, during the years, the term the next Messi has been applied to dozens of players who have failed to accomplish as much with the ball as the Argentine master.

Let us join GIVEMESPORT then as we examine 16 players who have at some point in their career been described as the next Messi and where they are today.

Martin Odegaard

Martin Odegaard is likely the best player on this list and the one who came closest to Lionel Messi.

Even so, Odegaard’s biggest fans have to admit that he’s not even close to being as good as The GOAT.

Although when he was a young man he was referred to as the next Messi, the path of the Arsenal leader has not been smooth. Odegaard has now been regarded as one of the finest players in the league though this is what many people thought he would become when he joined Real Madrid at the age of 15.

Although there was a very large change, the Norwegian took a lot of time to get on. There is lot of people feared that it would not be working with him.

Lee Sung-woo

Lee Seung-woo was referred many times, to as the Korean Messi at some time. He has been playing in Italy, Holland, and Portugal but he has never been as good as Messi.

The 25-year-old who netted the winner at had fewer than 20 goals to his name. Barcelona is now in Korea to play Suwon FC. It doesn’t look like he’ll ever hit the heights that his early promise suggested he could.

Mateusz Musialowski

There was a lot of excitement when Musialowski joined Liverpool, but just a few years after being called “the Polish Messi,” the player is rumored to be leaving Anfield and going back to Poland.

Some experts and fans said that Mateusz’s style was like Messi’s because of some of the goals he scored and the way he played in general, but it looks like his career won’t go anywhere near that far.

Musiaowski has had trouble getting on any of Liverpool’s young teams, and local papers say he may be leaving the club soon.

Gelson Martins

Since his stay in Sporting CP, Gelson Martins was compared to Messi and even to Cristiano Ronaldo, but he has never managed to compete with either of the players in work and output.

Martins continues to be a key figure in Monaco in Ligue 1. He has a record of 11 goals in 87 games in the league, and thus though, he did not become the next Messi, he has enjoyed a good career.

Iker Munain

Iker Muniain, known as the Spanish Messi has spent his entire life in Athletic Bilbao. He has never been in another team.

Although he has not been good as Messi, Muniain has become a legend at Bilbao. He has played over 400 games in the club and has scored 54 league goals in addition to having a wonderful career in La Liga.

Ryo Miyaichi

Ryo Miyaichi was at one point that referred to as the Japanese Messi. Ryo Miyaichi currently plays with YJ1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos in Japan. Marinos of the first division of Japan.

Fans may recall that many time when Miyaichi was brought into Arsenal in 2011, the fans belive that he had a lot of potential because he was signed by the Arsenal club. A lot of individuals believed that he would become a global player.

Miyaichi wasn’t as good as the scouts thought he would be, though, and he left Arsenal in 2015 after making just one league start for them.

Munir

Another player, Munir El Haddabi, graduated through Barcelona school. Similar to Messi, his promise excited quite a few experts.

Munir has been in LaLiga all the time. He has been at Sevilla, Alaves, Valencia, Getafe and even Barcelona where he has made 33 league starts and has scored 40 times.

The footballer Munir has enjoyed a career. He has been the winner of La Liga, Europa League, the Champions League and the Club World Cup but even he can claim that his career has not been as great as those of Messi.

Yassine Benzia

The Algerian-French player attended the Lyon youth school and then Lille. He was even referred to as the next Messi due to the goodness that he had.

Not so good, even with all that promise, Benzia has yet to do pretty well. Today he represents in Qarabag Azerbaijan.

Ryan Gould

Marin has not had a club in the last one year. He has transferred much and even played in Chelsea but he cannot live to the predictions that were made of him as a young player.

Juan Iturbe

Juan Iturbe was constantly referred to as Messi due to his dribbling, the low center of gravity and he has by no means matched Messi in success.

The winger is currently in Brazil with Gremio, though he was a success in Italy with Roma, Torino and Hellas Verno.

The Paraguayan himself played on loan in the premier league with Bournemouth but he failed to deliver on any promise despite being a late player.

Alen Halilovic

Following his transfer to Barcelona in 2014, Alen Halilovic was likened to Lionel Messi, however, the Croat has since deteriorated.

Halilovic has never played in the league during his two-year stay in Barcelona, and thus moved to the 202122 season in Reading in the Championship.

The playmaker currently serves in Fortuna Sittard in Holland. He has unfortunately not been anywhere as good as Barcelona thought he would be when they signed him.

Jean Mary Dongou

Jean Marie Dongou who was at some point a player at La Masia was at one point grouped with Messi.

Dongou attended the Samuel Etoo school, and later joined Barcelona. He is now out of a club after leaving Greek second-division team of Anagennisi Karditsa FC, last year.

Dongou can forever claim he was a Barcelona player because he did play one league match during his one year stay there but he can never claim that he was anywhere close to what Messi is.

Giovani Dos Santos

La Masia also produced Giovani dos Santos who was nicknamed as the next Messi when he was in the school of the Spanish giants.

In 26 league matches, the Mexican had scored three goals in Barcelona and when he transferred to England with Tottenham in 2008, everything appeared good.

The troublesome player thereafter moved around Spain, Turkey and even the United States with the LA Galaxy. He has not had a club since his stint with America, a Mexican leading club, ended in 2021.

Gerard Deulofeu

Gerard Deulofeu has experienced the Barcelona youth program and he was believed to be the next Messi.

But since then after joining clubs such as Watford and Everton in England and AC Milan and Udinese in Italy, Deulofeu himself would claim that this is not the case.

The winger has not been unsuccessful in career. He has now played a little over 300 games in which he has scored 69 goals, and now has scored 1 goal against 4 games with the Spanish national team.

Bojan

When Messi was very young, Bojan Krkic was termed as the rightful heir to his throne. He had to enter the limelight when he made his debut in Barcelona at the age of 17.

He is a professional football player to this day. He is currently a player at Vissel Kobe in Japan that Andres Iniesta had played beforehand.

Bojan played at Stoke, Ajax and Roma before he transferred to Japan. He had a good career and being compared to Messi, was likely to damage his growth and he did not do what many people expected him to.

It is believed by many that Lionel Messi is not only the best player of the 21 st century, he is also the best player of the all time.

On this list you can not put the blame of not being as good as the Barcelona great or having such a decorated career as his upon any of the players there.

It has nothing to do with the players, many of whom are very skilled, since it’s not easy to be even half as good as the Argentine wizard has been throughout his career.

But the fact that many of the players on this list didn’t make much of a mark and had poor lives shows that players shouldn’t be put under too much pressure too soon.