What happened to the Golden Ball and Golden Boot winners from previous U17 World Cups
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A list of players who've previously won the U17 World Cup Golden Boot and Golden Ball has emerged.
The U17 World Cup offers football fans the chance to see stars of tomorrow strut their stuff.
Several legendary players have started their journey to superstardom during the tournament.
On Wednesday, England were knocked out after a shock 2-1 defeat to Uzbekistan. The result is a shock, given England's recent pedigree in the competition.
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The Three Lions won the competition back in 2017, which was the mainstream's first taste of Manchester City starlet Phil Foden.
Foden managed to win the Golden Ball that year, while Rhian Brewster of Sheffield United took home the Golden Boot. Both players have had very different careers over the last six years.
It's the same further down the list. Nowhere else in football will you see Toni Kroos on a podium alongside Macauley Chrisantus.
Check out who won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot during every iteration since the turn of the millennium below and the club side they were with at the time. When we say some of these names will be a blast from the past, we mean it.
2001 Golden Ball winner - Florent Sinama Pongolle (France & Liverpool)
2001 Golden Boot winner - Florent Sinama Pongolle (France & Liverpool)
Sinama Pongolle was seen as a promising talent at Liverpool but he never quite lived up to the hype. He represented a whopping 13 clubs before retiring in 2019.
2003 Golden Ball winner - Cesc Fabregas (Spain & Barcelona)
2003 Golden Boot winner - Cesc Fabregas (Spain & Barcelona)
Fabregas needs no introduction. The midfielder won trophies with Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea as well as the World Cup and Euros with Spain. He's now caretaker manager of Como in Serie B.
2005 Golden Ball winner - Anderson (Brazil & Gremio)
Anderson joined Manchester United two years later and won the Champions League despite failing to live up to expectations. He last played for Turkish outfit Adana Demirspor in 2020.
2005 Golden Boot winner - Carlos Vela (Mexico & Guadalajara)
Carlos Vela joined Arsenal shortly after his exploits at the tournament. He's winding down his career with LAFC in the MLS.
2007 Golden Ball winner - Toni Kroos (Germany & Bayern Munich)
Kroos is perhaps the best player to feature on the list. He's won the lot at club level with Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, in addition to the World Cup with Germany. Can still be found hitting diagonals with ease at the Santiago Bernabeu.
2007 Golden Boot winner - Macauley Chrisantus (Nigeria & Abuja FC)
Chrisantus has scored nine goals in six games for Lynx in Gibraltar.
2009 Golden Ball winner - Sani Emmanuel (Nigeria & Bodens BK)
Emmanuel hasn't played since 2015 and he's still just 30-years-old.
2009 Golden Boot winner - Borja Baston (Spain & Atletico Madrid)
Baston had a spell with Swansea City in the Premier League but has mainly played in La Liga. Plies his trade for Oviedo in the Segunda Division.
2011 Golden Ball winner - Julio Gomez (Mexico & Pachuca)
Gomez never made a full international appearance for Mexico and hasn't played since 2020.
2011 Golden Boot winner - Souleymane Coulibaly (Ivory Coast & Tottenham)
Coulibaly was on the books of Tottenham Hotspur and had a lot of promise. He's now playing in Algeria.
2013 Golden Ball winner - Kelechi Iheanacho (Nigeria & Taye Academy)
Iheanacho won the Premier League during his time at Manchester City. Now playing for Leicester City in the Championship, he'll likely be back in the top-flight in no time.
2013 Golden Boot winner - Valmir Berisha (Sweden & Halmstads)
Berisha managed to bag a move to Serie A giants Roma thanks to his exploits in the United Emirates. Can be found in the Romanian League with 1599 Selimbar.
2015 Golden Ball winner - Kelechi Nwakali (Nigeria & Diamond Football Academy)
Nwakali was on the books of Arsenal between 2016 and 2019. Is now a midfielder for Chaves in Portugal.
2015 Golden Boot winner - Victor Osimhen (Nigeria & Ultimate Strikers Academy)
Osimhen is Napoli's main man and one of the most feared strikers around.
2017 Golden Ball winner - Phil Foden (England & Manchester City)
Foden is a lifelong City fan and remains a key player for Pep Guardiola.
2017 Golden Boot winner - Rhian Brewster (England & Liverpool)
Brewster is a Champions League winner with Liverpool. He helped Sheffield United earn promotion to the Premier League last season.
2019 Golden Ball winner - Gabriel Veron (Brazil & Palmeiras)
Veron is now at FC Porto. Expect him to make a big move in the next few years.
2019 Golden Ball winner - Sontje Hansen (Netherlands & Ajax)
Joined NEC from Ajax earlier this year.
Featured Image Credit: Getty Images
Topics: Phil Foden, England, Victor Osimhen, Cesc Fabregas, Toni Kroos
