8. Cherno Samba
As noted in the introduction, Samba is the player who went from being linked to some of the Premier League's finest to currently playing in the Norwegian second division. The interest in Samba started when he scored 132 goals in 32 games as a 13-year-old for St. Joseph's Academy. He went on to sign for Millwall and continued his prolific form for their youth academy, leading to further interest from the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United. Liverpool took him on trial (
as reported by the Guardian), but a move didn't materialise as Millwall wouldn't come up with a valuation fee, and Liverpool wouldn't go to tribunal. That decision proved fatal. Samba signed a new contract with Millwall which guaranteed three years of first-team football, though this never came to fruition. He was then offloaded to Spanish side Cadiz and loaned out to Malaga's B team shortly after, making just 4 league appearances without scoring. After making no appearances for Cadiz, he moved back to England to join Ian Holloway's Plymouth side. For Argyle, Samba made 14 appearances and scored just the once - hardly the prolific scoring rate he showed at an early age. He also represented England on U16, U17, U18, U19 and U20 levels, making 22 appearances in total without scoring. Instead of opting to play for England, Cherno decided to represent his native Gambia and has made 4 appearances at full international level, scoring once. Samba has since made a loan appearance for Wrexham, along with signing for Finnish side FC Haka and Greek second tier side Panetolikos. Now, Samba plays in the Norwegian second division for FK Tønsberg and has yet to make an appearance for them. Not only has Samba proved he hasn't reached the potential he showed at an early age, he has also lost his prolificacy. When considering that Samba partnered Wayne Rooney at youth level, it is incredible to see how different their careers have panned out.
Current Status: Rotation player for Norwegian second division side FK Tønsberg.
What He Could Have Been: First team player for Liverpool or Manchester United and England.