Dele Alli was ranked fourth in the 2016 Golden Boy standings, but what has happened to the other players who featured in the top 10.
At the time, Alli was making a name for himself at Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur, with whom he managed to score 67 goals in 269 matches.
However, after a string of injury issues and a major dip in form, Alli has struggled to find his best football over the last few years.
The 28-year-old left Spurs for Everton in 2021 and has also been sent out to Turkish side Besiktas on loan.
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Back in 2016, Alli was named the fourth best young player in the world after finishing behind winner Renato Sanches, Marcus Rashford and Kingsley Coman in the Golden Boy standings.
The likes of Ousmane Dembele, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Leroy Sane, Marco Asensio, Mahmoud Dahoud and Kelechi Iheanacho rounded off the top 10.
Sanches, who won the prestigious accolade at the time, struggled after he made a big-money move to Bayern Munich and has since played for the likes of Swansea City, Lille, Paris Saint Germain and Roma before returning to Benfica on loan at the start of the season.
Meanwhile, Englishman Rashford has won multiple trophies at Manchester United but has struggled for form in recent reasons.
Coman, who finished in third place, has lifted multiple titles at Bayern, making a total of 306 appearances so far.
The likes of Dembele, Donnarumma, Sane and Asensio all went on to win big trophies at their respectively clubs.
However, Iheanacho left Manchester City in 2017 for Leicester City and is currently playing for La Liga side Sevilla.
On Tuesday, it was reported that Alli could make his long-awaited return to football at Everton.
According to Sky Sports' Alan Myers, he heard that things are going well behind the scenes for the star midfielder.
He wrote on social media: “I believe he’s all good and is closer to having some game time (U21’s) etc only what I’ve heard.
“As far as I’m aware a deal has been agreed in principle but that will only kick in once he’s fit and ready to play.”
Topics: Dele Alli, Everton, Football, Marcus Rashford, Renato Sanches, Kingsley Coman, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Ousmane Dembele, Leroy Sane, Marco Asensio
Marcus Chan