5 players Cristiano Ronaldo named as future superstars in 2015: Where are they now?

Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest footballers of all time and is still going strong at the age of 35. The Portuguese talisman, alongside Lionel Messi, has shaped a new era in world football and won trophies aplenty for club and country.

With five Ballon d'Or awards and UEFA Champions League trophies apiece to his name, Cristiano Ronaldo has left his mark on the beautiful game and is sure to stand the test of time.

🗣️ "You see many players with potential. At 16 he's still young but you can see he's a very good player."3 hits ✔️ 2 near misses? ❌ 5 years ago, Cristiano Ronaldo predicted the next batch of world superstars... 👀🔥 https://t.co/tBjm98XH9k

— SPORTbible (@sportbible) September 25, 2020

In 2015, the Portuguese superstar was plying his trade with Real Madrid at the time and was asked to name five footballers who could be ones to keep an eye on in the coming years. Cristiano Ronaldo named Martin Odegaard, Memphis Depay, Eden Hazard, while Paul Pogba also got a mention.

"You see many players with potential, I will mention [Martin] Odegaard of Madrid for example. At 16 he's still young but you can see he's a very good player."

"[Eden] Hazard, for example, the No7 of Manchester [United], [Memphis] Depay, is a good player too. [Paul] Pogba... and maybe Neymar."

Cristiano Ronaldo's picks continue to enjoy varying degrees of success

Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar shared the pitch several times in La Liga

One way or another, it could be argued that each of the aforementioned players have gone on to achieve success.

Reading time! 📖 Living and learning! 😉👏🏼 pic.twitter.com/okI9YlSuug

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) September 26, 2020

While Neymar and Pogba are amongst the best players in the world in their positions, Odegaard is back as a first-team player at Real Madrid and Depay is a key player for club and country. Hazard, on the other hand, signed for Real Madrid last summer and is one of the biggest matchwinners in world football on his day.

Cristiano Ronaldo is also going strong at the age of 35 and is coming on the back of a stunning goalscoring season for Juventus and Portugal. The legendary attacker recently became the first European in history to score 100 international goals, as he continues to set the standard when it comes to goalscoring.

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