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A young player with exceptional talent who's expected to become world class. The label creates pressure and expectations. Some wonderkids fulfill the hype (Messi, Mbappé), others don't (Freddy Adu, remember him?). Football Manager made the term mainstream - everyone's hunting the next wonderkid before their price explodes. The hype machine starts younger every year.
Lamine Yamal became Barcelona's latest wonderkid, playing first-team football at 16 - the hype around him mirrors earlier prodigies like Messi and Ansu Fati, with everyone waiting to see if he can handle the weight of expectation.
Robbie
Jan 31, 2026
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