FC Barcelona's famed La Masia academy has produced some of the best players in the world, including the likes of Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi, but not all who graduate live up to expectations. Here are 10 wonderkids who did not make the grade at Barca.
Click through the gallery above to see 10 wonderkids who failed to live up to expectations at Barcelona
Over the years, and particularly in recent times, the La Masia academy has produced some of the finest footballers to grace world football.
Since the turn of the century, stars such as Victor Valdes, Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Iniesta and Messi have all progressed from the club's youth set-up to star for the first team. Not all of the club's academy graduates enjoy such stellar success, however, and a number of highly-rated youngsters have failed to live up to expectations.
A prime example of this comes in the form of Bojan Krkic, who, at the time of breaking through, smashed Messi's record to become the Barca's youngest-ever player in a LaLiga match, before becoming the club's youngest-ever league goalscorer too (both records have since been broken by Ansu Fati).
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Despite scoring an admirable 41 goals in 163 appearances for the club, Bojan struggled to live up to expectations and was ultimately shipped off to Roma, before later having spells at AC Milan, Ajax Amsterdam, Stoke City, Mainz and Alaves. He currently plies his trade in the US with MLS side Montreal Impact.
Fellow forwards Cristian Tello and Sandro Ramirez were also highly rated by the club's hierarchy, but similarly failed to live up to expectations. After 86 appearances for Barca, Tello joined FC Porto and Fiorentina on loan before settling at Real Betis, while Ramirez has faded into relative obscurity at Real Valladolid after failed moves to Everton, Sevilla and Real Sociedad.
Munir El Haddadi and Giovani dos Santos are full internationals for Spain and Mexico, respectively, but neither lived up to expectations during their brief stints at the Catalan club, as was the case with Venezuela forward Jefferen Suarez.
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A number of defenders, including a current Premier League star, are also among those who did not quite cut it at Barca – you can see the full list by scrolling through the gallery above!
Are surprised that any of these players didn't make the grade at Barca? Share your thoughts by commenting in the section below.
