Some players take a long time to reach the top of the game. They grind away, gradually improve, until they eventually reach their peak.
Others do it in a very different way. They come out of nowhere, becoming one of the biggest names in the sport almost over night. Often this results in big money transfers.
This is something that has happened a number of times over the years, and we have picked out some of the most memorable deals.
Ronaldo
Young Ronaldo was unbelievable. PSV, Cruzeiro and Brazil pic.twitter.com/MLyGWSyolF
— Classic Football Shirts (@classicshirts) March 1, 2018
While he had been part of the Brazil squad for the 1994 World Cup (he did not feature in the tournament) and scored 44 senior goals for Cruzeiro, Ronaldo arrived in Europe as a relatively unheralded player when he signed for PSV in the summer of '94.
As told in this excellent Mundial podcast focusing on his move to the Eredivisie, his new teammates had never heard of him. They soon realised the type of player they had on their hands. When he scored an amazing hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Cup, the rest of the continent did too.
In all, 'El Fenomeno' scored 42 goals in 46 games for PSV. Despite an injury hit second season, Barcelona would fork out a then world record $19.5 million to bring him to La Liga.
Joao Felix
How many of you reading this have actually seen Joao Felix play more than a handful of games? Our guess is not that many, and yet you know all about him.
That is because he is set to join Atletico Madrid for a €120million fee. For a 19-year old player with 40 senior appearances to his name, that is sum wedge of cash. Almost nobody outside of Portugal had heard of the player only 12 months ago, and he is now set to become the fourth most expensive player of all time.
Kylian Mbappé
Mbappé was a highly rated prospect during his youth in France, but few could have predicted just how fast he would rise to the summit of world football.
He took Ligue 1 and the Champions League by storm in 2017 as a 17-year old, scoring 21 goals and registering eight assists in only 38 appearances as Monaco won the league title and reached the semi final of the Champions League.
PSG would pay €180million to bring him to the French capital a few months later.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
One year ago, Wan-Bissaka had made seven appearances for Crystal Palace after coming through their youth academy. Today, he is a £5omillion defender, and the second most expensive English player of all time despite having not won an international cap at senior level.
While you can debate the merit of the fee forked out by Manchester United, his defensive stats last season were incredibly impressive. He still has a lot to prove in the attacking aspect of the game, but he will have more licence to go forward while playing for United.
It will be interesting to see how he fares over the next couple of seasons, and he is certainly a player who's development has been unpredictable thus far.
Andy Carroll
While the other players on this list went on to become superstars, or have the potential to do so, Andy Carroll's career took a very different turn. His £35million move to Liverpool was considered a huge risk at the time, with the then 22-year old having only had half a season of regular Premier League football under his belt.
Having been only the sixth most prolific player in the Championship the season before, Carroll found himself at the top of the goalscoring charts at the time of the move in January 2011. Liverpool clearly thought this would become the norm for the player, but it turned out to be a fluke.
It may have been a meteoric rise, but his fall was even swifter. Still one of the worst transfers of all time.
Ousmane Dembele
Ousmane Dembele was viewed as an interesting prospect during his debut (and only) season Rennes, but many felt he was still a fare bit away from becoming a star when he moved to Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2016. He would be sold for over €100million within a year.
He was absolutely sensational during his lone season in Germany, registering eight goals and 18 assists in all competitions.
He has yet to replicate that form for Barcelona, having been plagued by injuries since his big money move. Still 22-years old, he has every chance of getting back to his best.
Nicolas Anelka
The story of Nicolas Anelka's time at Arsenal... pic.twitter.com/I8HOCB5UMe
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) February 23, 2017
Arsene Wenger made a habit of picking up a bargain from his homeland during his early days at Arsenal, but none were made a more surprising impact than Nicolas Anelka. Having signed for £500,000 from PSG in 1997, he did not play much during his first season in England.
This made him impact in the following campaign even more surprising. At 19-years old, he would be Arsenal's top scorer in the 98/99 season with 17 league goals. Real Madrid came calling that summer, and Anelka would force through a massive £22.3million move.
