10 footballers who never fulfilled their potential

To become one of the top footballers in the world, it is necessary to have talent, attitude and luck. In many cases, players gifted with surreal raw talent have failed to live up to expectations, because they lacked one, if not both, of the latter pair.

While attitude solely depends on the player in being professional enough and working hard, luck is usually out of reach. Injuries, or the wrong moves, have often been the reasons why a player has failed to reach the next level.

Here are 10 extremely talented footballers who never really fulfilled their potential.

#10 - Juan Roman Riquelme:

In Argentina, Riquelme is considered a footballing genius and one of the best players to have ever graced a football pitch. He is an idol for Boca Juniors fans, having helped them win three Copa Libertadores titles.

In Europe, however, the opinions around him are divided, as he never really managed to cement himself among the best, despite having an excellent 2005-2006 season where he led Villarreal to the semi finals of the UEFA Champions League.

#9 - Ariel Ortega:

Ariel Ortega of Argentina runs with the ball

Just like his compatriot Riquelme, Ariel Ortega was one of the most gifted players in the world. With his close control, play-making skills, finishing and speed, he was magical by all means. Despite impressing at Valencia and Sampdoria in Europe, his attitude always caused him problems, and European clubs quickly had enough of him.

A return to Argentina followed, before he eventually retired at River Plate, having won a total of seven league titles and one Copa Libertadores.

But anyone who followed Ariel in his early beginnings knows that this is still too little for someone who had such massive potential.

#8 - Sebastian Deisler:

Sebastian Deisler vs Argentina

Once upon a time, Sebastian Deisler was hailed as the biggest German talent, and as the future of German football. As a matter of fact, Deisler was worth the hype.

He had the ability to turn a game upside down-down, thanks to his remarkable dribbling skills, pace and creativity. But unlike Riquelme and Ortega, the essential reason that stopped him from developing is injury.

After signing for FC Bayern in 2002, Deisler was considered a huge addition to the Bavarian giants, but would go on to only feature in 62 league games in between his arrival and the year of his retirement, 2007, at the age of 27. A tragic ending to what could have been a sensational player.

#7 - Wayne Rooney:

Wayne Rooney vs Stoke City - Premier League

Now of course, Wayne Rooney has achieved some remarkable numbers in his career, such as hitting the 200 goals mark in the English Premier League, as well as being the historical top scorer of England's national team with 53 hits.

taHowever, as the 31-year old edges closer towards the end of his career, we feel he could have written a far better legacy, for a player who had his raw talent. Rooney had been inconsistent at Manchester United for a couple of seasons, before moving to Everton. While his goal-scoring record for the Three Lions is nothing short of impressive, Rooney never really stood-out for England in official tournaments.

#6 - Ricardo Quaresma:

Quaresma vs Croatia - Round of 16: UEFA Euro 2016

Ricardo Quaresma made his debut for Sporting Lisbon in 2001, in a season where he ended up clinching his first title as a professional, by winning the Portuguese league.

After a disappointing short spell at Barcelona in 2003-2004, Quaresma returned to his country at the age of 21, where he joined FC Porto. It is there where Ricardo impressed the most, winning three straight league titles, and being voted the player of the year in 2006.

In 2008, Quaresma who was already 25 and having won it all in Portugal, while displaying phenomenal skills and dribbling abilities, decided to make the switch to Internazionale after compatriot José Mourinho asked for his services.

It is there where the Portuguese's career went donwhills, as he failed to estbalish himself in all his future destinations.

Quaresma was however, able to make a stunning comeback to the national team where he played a major role helping conquer the Eurocup in 2016. It is some sort of payback for one of the biggest talents in Portugal's history, who could still make the trip to Russia for one final shot at the World Cup.

#5 - Pablo Aimar:

Pablo Aimar vs Mexico - World Cup 2006

In terms of silverware, Pablo Aimar's career was not too bad. Three Argentinian league titles, two La Liga titles, four Portuguese league triumphs, the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Supercup are nothing to be ashamed of, after all.

However, Aimar's early days were far more impressive than the second half of his career. After winning World Cup under 20 with Argentina, he was considered by many as Diego Maradona's heir. His best moments were without any doubt during his spell at Valencia, in between 2001 and 2006, where he helped Los Che reach the Champions League final, and fight Barcelona and Real Madrid toe-to-toe in many league campaigns.

But it is in 2005, after Italian tactician Claudio Ranieri replaced Rafa Benitez, that Aimar's career started going downhill. Being benched for tactical reasons as well picking up several injuries as soon as he was started to retrieve his place, the Argentinian soon found himself searching for a new club.

His next destination would be Real Zaragoza in 2006, but despite showing traits of greatness, the guy who once was Lionel Messi's footballing-idol, became a shadow of himself.

#4 - Robinho:

Robinho vs Netherlands: 2010 FIFA World Cup - Quarter Finals

Until this day, Santos scouts insist that Robinho is the biggest talent they have ever discovered. Even bigger than Neymar, they confirm. The Paris Saint Germain star grew up idolizing Robinho, just like many other current footballers such as Eden Hazard, Gabigol and Vinicius Junior.

After winning two league titles with Santos, Robinho joined Real Madrid in 2006, where he entertained the fans with his magical skills and dazzling dribbles. The Brazilian played an essential role in helping Madrid claim two La Liga titles in 2007 and 2008, before joining Manchester City.

In England, Robinho's end-product did not match the fashion of his dribbling abilities, and he was criticized by many, before securing a move to Italian giants AC Milan. Robinho shone in his beginnings at Milan, where he won the Serie A as well as the Supercup, but his form quickly dropped as he failed to maintain consistency in his performances and eventually returned to Brazil.

His European club-career was plenty of ups and downs, but despite that, Robinho was constantly one of the best performers for Brazil's national team, having won two Confederations Cup titles, as well as the Copa América in 2007, as the top scorer and best player of the tournament, after crushing Argentina 3-0 in the final.

Robinho has had a lot of great moments in his career, but it is still too little for someone who was considered to be the new Pelé. He is regarded as a flop by many, mainly because he never lived up to the expecations of being the best player in the world.

And he only has himself and his lack of professionalism to blame, as he prioritized partying over hard work.

#3 - Adriano:

Adriano vs Sampdoria - Serie A

When asked about the biggest regret in his professional career, former Internazionale captain Javier Zanetti's answer was very touching.

What Zanetti regrets the most was seeing Adriano's career being ruined, without being able to do anything about it. After two spectacular seasons at Parma, Inter resigned Adriano in 2004, at the age of 22. The Brazilian was already one of the best players in the league, and was being touted as the new Ronaldo.

Adriano led Brazil to Copa América 2004 triumph ending up as top scorer and best player, after scoring a miraculous last-moment goal against Argentina in the final, which led to penalties, where Brazil emerged victorious.

In 2005, Adriano was again the number one star for Brazil, ending up as top scorer and best player of the Confederations Cup, after single-handedly demolishing Germany in the semi finals, and playing a big role in crushing Argentina 4-1 in the final game.

At that moment, even Ronaldo himself picked Adriano as his successor for the famous 'camisa nove' shirt. But what happened next? The rising striker's father died, and people close to Adriano revealed that he moaned his death, and was not able to recover.

The Brazilian left Inter back to Brazil where he started drinking and partying nonstop. However, Adriano signed for Carioca giants Flamengo in 2009, and he was again the best player and the top scorer in a competition that he won, this time the Brazilian league.

And that's about it. From that moment, Adriano totally gave up on football and did not even bother showing up for training anymore.

#2 - Denilson:

Denislon vs Valencia - La Liga

When football fans across the globe talk about unfulfilled potential, Denilson is usually one of the most common examples that comes to mind. The Brazilian was blessed with phenomenal dribbling skills, and incredible acceleration to pull his way past defenders.

At his best, Denilson seemed unstoppable and the opponents often gathered against him in numbers in order to figure out a way to contain him. In 1998, he joined Real Betis at the age of 21, for $43 million, which was the world-record at that time.

Despite winning the Copa del Rey in 2005, Denilson's end product was too poor and he never justified the crazy sum that Betis paid for him.

His subsequent spells at club football did not impress too much either. However, in his early days, Denilson basically won it all with Brazil's national team: the Confederations Cup and Copa América in 1997, and the FIFA World Cup in 2002, where he played the role of a super sub, who would come on to humiliate the defenders for the spectacle.

The fact that Denilson's last Brazil call-up came at the age of 25, helps you understand how quickly his career went downhill. Having won it all with Brazil, you'd expect that he'd still make the squad later on, as an experienced player - but no, the coaches did not even deem him good enough for this mission.

#1 - George Best:

George Best and Pelé

It is common to hear among Manchester United fans, that George Best is the greatest player to ever wear the red shirt, which could lead you into questioning his presence in this list.

While it is true that Best guided United to two English league titles, as well as to a Champions League triumph in 1968, what many don't know is that Best took the decision of retiring from football at the young age of 25.

He eventually reversed his decision and continued being part of the club up until 1974 before giving up for good.

After leaving United, Best played for 16 clubs in less than 10 years, and as you can guess, he didn't even show anywhere near the talent he once possessed.

At his best, George Best was the best player in the world, who could do it all. From spectacular Maradona-esque dribbles, to fantastic finishing. He was the definition of the big-game player, but his tendencies of following women and alcohol ruined what could have been an even more legendary legacy.

It is hard to predict what Best could have achieved if he took training more seriously and was more professional throughout his career.