Let’s be frank: there’s no one comparable to the genius of Lionel Messi, who has stunned opponents and in-stadium fans since making his competitive Barcelona debut in October 2004. And every once in a while, his English counterpart emerges: this time around, it’s Arsenal’s 15-year-old sensation, Max Dowman.
At such a young age, the left-footer’s ability to weave in and out of opponents – especially with such enviable poise and guile – has drawn comparisons to the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner. Just watch the highlights of his pre-season cameo against Newcastle below:
Gabriel Heinze, who recently joined the Gunners’ coaching set-up to nurture Hale End alumni to the best they can be, did not tread lightly when speaking about the 2009-born superstar, who is admired by Spanish giants Real Madrid. Heinze said:
“The kid is special. I haven't seen something comparable since Messi. And as an Argentinian, I am not saying that lightly.”
Dowman is not the first Englishman to have been talented enough to be compared to Messi, however. In particular, two former rising stars stand out – but what are they up to nowadays after not reaching the heights that were expected of them both?
Callum Gribbin
callum gribbin man utd
Callum Gribbin, remember him? Born and raised within a stone’s throw of Old Trafford, the attacking midfielder’s dream was always to play for Manchester United and that looked likely after he was promoted to training with the senior side at 16. Speaking exclusively to The Athletic, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Wayne Rooney and Angel Di Maria came naturally to him.
“I didn’t feel out of place at all. We (the academy) used to train on the next pitch to the first team. I used to love it when we’d finished training, and I got to watch them for 10 minutes.”
“I’d see them in the canteen having their dinner and I used to always think, ‘I want to get on their table’,” the Salford-born 26-year-old said before adding, “So when I was moved up, I just went with it. My attitude was: ‘This is where I need to be’.”
For Gribbin, it just wasn’t meant to be – and a mixture of mentality problems and issues with injury saw him released in the summer of 2019 after 11 years of plying his trade in the club’s youth ranks. Upon leaving, he moved to Chris Wilder’s Sheffield United.
He failed to earn a first-team outing during his time under Wilder’s watchful eye and, evidently, gametime was of the essence, and so he joined League Two side Barrow, though he only managed five appearances. A stint with non-league Radcliffe followed, as did a spell at FC United of Manchester.
As of February 2025, Gribbin has been plying his trade for Northern Premier League Premier Division side Rylands FC.
england callum gribbin
Still, six years on from being let go from one of the biggest clubs in the world, the six-cap England U17 international still dreams of making a career for himself at the top level – in the Premier League, that is. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have days when that has come into my head,” he said, per The Sun.
“But I’ve always believed in my talent and that I’m too good to give it up. If I wasn’t as good as I was, even 10 per cent less, I would have given up. But I see the next 18 months as a massive opportunity to get back to where I need to be.”
Marcus Edwards
marcus edwards burnley
Once heralded as one of Tottenham Hotspur’s – and England’s, for that matter – brightest academy prospects, Marcus Edwards has an atypical footballing journey back to the Premier League.
Unfortunately for the London-born winger, who never managed to make his mark on senior proceedings at Spurs, he made just one appearance for the club – a 15-minute cameo in a 5-0 League Cup third-round win against lower-league Gillingham.
That’s not to say he didn’t impress, though, as former Arsenal and Tottenham academy coach Temisan Williams believes he was the best technical player he saw at academy level. What’s more, the coach compared him to the aforementioned Messi.
“Hands down it was Marcus Edwards. When I saw him at Tottenham, I thought I saw the English Messi. He was that good and he was playing an age group up.”
Instead of staying local, Edwards expanded his horizons by joining Vitoria de Guimaraes in the summer of 2019 after loan stints with Norwich City and Excelsior in the Netherlands. In Portugal, he notched 20 goals and 14 assists in 96 total outings.
A move to Sporting CP inevitably beckoned in 2021 and, under the tenureship of now Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim, he chalked up 50 goal contributions (24 goals and 26 assists) in 120 games, which included scoring against Tottenham in the Champions League in October 2022.
Burnley boss Scott Parker – who has previously worked with Edwards during his time with Tottenham’s youth set-up – took him under his wing for the second half of last season and decided this summer to make his move back to his homeland permanent.
sporting marcus edwards
“We had a good relationship back then so when I knew he wanted me to come, that was enough for me,” Edwards said about Parker, per The Mirror. “From knowing what he ‘s like and how he is and the fact that Burnley is such a big club in general. It made sense.”