2. Gianluigi Donnarumma
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He is probably the most talked about young goalkeeper in the past 6 months due to his meteoric rise to the Milan first team. While most youngsters of his age are preparing for school examinations, Donnarumma was out there, competing against the very best; living his dreams.
He grew up in the youth academy of Napoli, and at the age of 14, he was signed by Milan. In just two short years, at the tender age of 16, he was promoted to the first team by AC Milan manager Sinisa Mihajlovic, replacing senior goalkeepers Diego Lopez and Christian Abbiati.
In Mihajlovic’s mind, there was no question. He had seen the saves that Donnarumma pulled off in weekly training sessions.
“I don’t look at age, I look at whether someone is good or not,” insisted the manager. “The lad trains well and right now he gives me more confidence.” With Diego López struggling between the sticks and his team shipping 14 goals in their first eight league games, Mihajlovic might also have felt that he did not have an awful lot to lose. He took a leap of faith and was duly rewarded as the youngster took to senior football like a fish to water, prompting the manager to call him “the future of Italian football”.
Standing 6ft.5inches tall, he is an asset to any team. Tall, strong and confident, Donnarumma is the perfect package, and though many elite European clubs are after him, AC Milan would be reluctant to sell him. His agent Mino Raiola called him “a work of art”, and insists the youngster is worth 170 million Euros.
The highly-rated youngster now has 10 clean sheets in his first season as a professional goalkeeper. The teenage sensation has set the bar extremely high for himself next season. Still just 17, he boasts the qualities to become one of the greatest of all time.
