5 Players Who Were Called Next Lionel Messi but Flopped As Ansu Fati Joins Brighton

• Ansu Fati has joined Brighton and Hove Albion on a season-long loan
• Once dubbed the next Lionel Messi, the move will be seen as a downgrade for the Barcelona number 10
• We take a look at some of the other players who were once compared to Messi but never pulled it off

That Ansu Fati has moved to Brighton and Hove Albion has come as a shock to many people. When he burst onto the scene in 2019, much was expected of him, given how well he adapted to Barcelona.

He broke a couple of records, including becoming the youngest Blaugrana player to score and assist in the same match at only 16 years of age. The future was extremely bright.

So bright was it that he was handed Lionel Messi's number 10 shirt after the Argentine departed for Paris. In Fati, many people thought Barcelona had gotten a replica of Messi.

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But barely two years later, after all the fanfare, the now 20-year-old has joined Brighton, as confirmed by the club's official channels.

Don't get us wrong, the Seagulls are a decent team, with Roberto De Zerbi elevating them even further after his appointment last season. But expectation was rife that Fati would follow the same trajectory as Messi and become a Camp Nou legend.

He isn't the only one. Many players have fallen on the sword of being dubbed the 'next Lionel Messi', only for them to fail to replicate those lofty standards. Apart from Fati, Sports Brief takes a look at other such players.

5. Ryo Miyaichi

So good was Ryo Miyaichi that he was christened 'the Japanese Messi'. Arsene Wenger saw enough to be convinced that he would be a good prospect for Arsenal.

However, he struggled to cope with the demands of Premier League football and fell off the radar.

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4. Ryan Gauld

The 'Scottish Messi'. Gauld was another player whose coaches expected much of him. He failed to live up to his potential after he moved from Dundee United to Sporting CP, where he didn't make an impact.

He is now playing in the Major League Soccer for the Vancouver Whitecaps at only 27 years of age.

3. Jack Wilshere

Jack Wilshere's story will always be the perfect blueprint of how injury robbed the world of seeing the legend he was set to be.

Wilshere announced himself to the world against Messi himself in a Champions League round of 16 tie. Then 19 years old, the England international outplayed the famous midfield trio of Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, and Sergio Busquets.

Injuries would later derail his career until he officially retired last season.

2. Gerard Deulofeu

Barcelona chiefs thought they had pulled off another masterclass like Messi's when Deulofeu came through the ranks of the La Masia academy.

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Deulofeu had exciting spells at Watford, Everton, AC Milan, and Udinese, but like Wilshere, he struggled to remain fit for long periods of time.

Currently 29 years old, his best years are quickly getting beyond him.

1. Bojan Krkic

Another Barcelona product, Krkic was elevated to stardom and hailed as a Messi replica even before Messi became the legend that he is.

After making his debut for the Catalan side aged 17, Krkic struggled to keep up with the comparisons and had spells with Stoke, Ajax, and even Japanese side Vissel Kobe.

He retired last season at 32 years old.

Other names include the likes of Giovanni Dos Santos, Allen Halilovic, Marko Marin, and Munir El Haddadi, who had all the showings of becoming the 'next Messi', but somehow, somewhere along the way, the pressure got to them.

For Fati, he will be hoping that De Zerbi can reignite his 'stalled' career. The idea of the Italian having Fati, Kaoru Mitoma, Evan Ferguson, and Joao Pedro should be exciting for neutrals.