Grading the past Golden Boys

2010 Mario Balotelli

Mario Balotelli

The quintessential definition of a problem child, Balotelli has courted more attention for his off-field antics than for his performances on the field. From setting his house on fire with Christmas fire crackers, to visiting an all female prison just to see what it looked like, to his eccentric 'why always me' celebration, Balotelli's career has been that of one piece of drama after another.

He has had numerous spells with some of Europe's biggest clubs including Manchester City, Liverpool, AC Milan and Inter Milan but he failed to make the most of it.

He is currently playing for OGC Nice in the French league and seems to have lost his flair for the dramatic, instead focusing on his football career, and his career has been resuscitated enough to warrant a call up to the national team after a four year absence.

Verdict - Unfulfilled Potential

2011 Mario Gotze

Gotze is enjoying a new lease of life back at Dortmund

On the back of his stellar performances at the heart of midfield of Klopp's all conquering Dortmund side which won shock back-to-back Bundesliga titles, Gotze was named Golden Boy of 2011.

An ill-advised transfer to Bayern Munich halted his progress as he struggled for gametime but he has enjoyed a new lease of life since returning to BVB. He would forever be immortalised as the man who scored the extra time goal to hand Germany their fourth world title at the 2014 World Cup. He was, however, left out of the squad four years later, as the world champions crashed out of the group stage in Russia.

Verdict - Unfulfilled potential due to Bayern debacle but could revive his career