Footballers who have shown themselves to be top level players often receive large amounts of money relatively early in their lives. The financial stability that is provided allows them to take on more responsibilities than the average person of the same age, and some of the biggest names in football have done just that, by becoming parents at a very young age.
Let’s take a look at five famous footballers who fathered children while they were still teenagers themselves.
1) Eden Hazard (19)
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Eden Hazard met and fell in love with Natasha Van Honacker at the tender age of 14. Hazard left Belgium to play for Lille in France, and after Natasha completed her studies, she joined him. The childhood sweethearts got married seven years later in April of 2012, and now have three children together.
Natasha gave birth to their first child Yannis Hazard on 19 December 2010, when the Belgian footballer was only 19 years old. Three years later their second son, Leo was born. The couple had their third child Samy in September 2015.
Hazard comes from a family of footballers, with both his parents as well as his three younger brothers all involved in the game. Considering this, it would be of little surprise if his own children end up becoming professional players themselves. They certainly have the right genes for it.
2) Jack Wilshere (19)
Jack Wilshere has two children with his ex-partner Lauren Neal. The couple split up in 2010 after it was revealed that the Arsenal midfielder was unfaithful in his relationship, and it came as a surprise to Wilshere when he found out that Lauren was expecting his child.
On hearing about the pregnancy, Wilshere vowed to support and stand by her and to be there for the child. On 29 September 2011, Archie Jack Wilshere was born, Making the English midfielder a parent at the age of 19.
In spite of the personal troubles they faced, the couple had a second child together. Their daughter Delilah Grace Wilshere was born on 26 September 2013. Wilshere is now engaged to his current girlfriend, Andriani Michael.
3) Neymar (19)
Brazil and Barcelona superstar Neymar has a son with his ex-girlfriend Carolina Nogueira Dantas, whom he was dating during his time as a rising star at Brazilian club Santos FC. David Lucca da Silva Santos was born on the 24 August 2011, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Neymar was 19 years old then, and his girlfriend Carolina Dantas, who was studying medicine at the time, was only 17 when she gave birth to their child.
Since his parents are no longer together, David Lucca da Silva lives with his mother but he is frequently visited by Neymar, and father and son spend a lot of time together. In the initial stages, Neymar refused to reveal who the mother of his child was out of concern for her privacy, but he later came clean about her identity in public.
4) Raheem Sterling (18)
England and Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has somewhat of a bad boy reputation. The youngster has twice had assault charges filed against him by two different women, but he was acquitted in both cases. Last year he was the subject of many crazy internet rumours, particularly about the number of children he has fathered.
Despite being so young, there were some rumours alleging that the player has fathered at least three children with three different women, and that wasn’t even the most outlandish of the rumours.
Many claimed that the former Liverpool man had 7 or 8 children. However, the truth is that Sterling has only one child - his daughter, Melody Rose Sterling. Melody was born in 2012 when Raheem was involved in a brief relationship with a woman. The identity of her mother is currently unknown.
5) Anthony Martial (19)
Frenchman Anthony Martial has two children with his wife Samantha Martial. They have two daughters together, Peyton and Toto Martial. The Manchester United star met Samantha when he was just 17. After a year together, Samantha was pregnant with their first child Peyton, and Martial became a father when he was only 19 years old.
Unfortunately, the happy relationship wouldn’t last. Anthony Martial has been unfaithful in his marriage on multiple occasions, and the couple are no longer together, putting an end to their four-year long relationship. Martial became intimate with former X Factor contestant Emily Wade in Paris after telling her that he was single, despite being a married man and a father at the time.
Samantha believes that Manchester United are at fault for the failure of their marriage. She says that Martial’s move to the club destroyed her life, as the sudden fame and money changed her husband, who was no longer the man she used to know.
