Big boots to fill | When footballers follow in the glorious footsteps of their fathers, it is quite the sight to behold

There is nothing that truly tugs at my heartstrings like seeing a young person follow in the good steps of their parents by making a positive impact in society, be it a daughter becoming a teacher like her mother, or a son following in his dad's path and pursuing a career as doctor or even a policeman.

But there is truly something special about the sons of footballers walking over the whitewash and reminding us of the exploits of their old men before them.

On Saturday, I watched in awe across two matches, one in the English Premier League and the other in Italy's Serie A, as three sons of legendary footballers strutted their stuff on the hallowed turfs of those two nations' iconic football stadiums.

I just love seeing the sons of legendary former footballers doing well, because it seems as though a lot of people are often betting on them to fail.

Locally, we often saw somewhat unjust criticism levelled against Kaizer Motaung Jr during his time turning out for his father's team Kaizer Chiefs despite being quite a decent number 9.

Jomo Sono's son, Bamuza, who was a creative midfielder who held his own, also couldn't escape the enormous shadow of his revered father, the Black Prince, despite enjoying a pretty solid professional career turning out for his father's club Jomo Cosmos particular in the early to mid 2000s when Ezenkosi enjoyed a good run as cup specialists of sorts.

Further afield, witnessing Justin Kluivert score a hattrick for AFC Bournemouth away at Newcastle United was a beautiful sight to behold as he helped his side romp to a 4-1 win. Justin is of course the son of the legendary and prolific hitman, Patrick Kluivert, who used to rifle goals in for the likes of Ajax, Barcelona, Newcastle and the Netherlands.

It was a well taken trio of goals that even his own prolific father would have been proud of.

The 25-year-old Dutch international has had a nomadic career, having graduated from Ajax Amsterdam's famed De Toekomst youth academy and represented the Dutch giants just like his old man before him he has also had spells turning out for OGC Nice in France's Ligue 1, AS Roma in Italy, RB Leipzig in the German Bundesliga and six times Spanish La Liga champions Valencia CF.

Arriving in the south coast of England in 2023, Kluivert has expectedly taken some time acclimatising to the rigorous English Premier League.

This season he has finally hit his stride, already reaching double figures in the goals column at practically the halfway stage of the campaign.

The young Kluivert could only manage 7 goals in 32 Premier League outings last season, eventually ending up with 9 in all competitions, but the speedy forward now boasts 10 Premier League goals in 21 appearances and an overall 11 strikes in all competitions in 23 outings for The Cherries in the current 2024/2025 campaign.

Those 10 strikes in the English topflight consist of two hattricks. Kluivert's goals should be enough to see him earn a well-deserved return to coach Ronald Koeman's Netherlands national team set up for March's UEFA Nations League two-legged quarter final tie which will see the Oranje square off against European champions Spain.

Kluivert's youngest brother Shane Kluivert, an 18-year-old forward, is making his way through FC Barcelona's famed La Masia academy and he is hailed among the brightest prospects at Barcelona where his father scored over 100 goals in just six years between 1998 and 2004.

Also making their dads proud on Saturday night were Timothy Weah and Khéphren Thuram, sons of 1995 Ballon d'Or and former Liberian president George Weah and 1998 FIFA World Cup winning French defensive mainstay Lillian Thuram, respectively.

Thuram Jr laid off an inch perfect assist for Weah Jr to extend Juventus' lead in a hard fought 2-0 derby win against a resurgent AC Milan in Turin.

Another Thuram, this time the older Marcus, is banging them in for Inter Milan, scoring 12 times in 19 outings.

While Marcus is a French national team regular with 29 caps since his debut in 2020, his younger brother will be quietly hoping that his solid performances in central midfield for The Oldy Lady of Italian football will help him add to the solitary cap he's received under French national team head coach Didier Deschamps.

Weah Jr, born in Brooklyn, New York, is expected to be one of the leaders of the US Men's National Team (USMNT) when they go on the hunt for glory when they host the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Football is littered with the sons of the game's greats looking to trace the footsteps previously traversed by their fathers.

We could soon be seeing the son of Robin van Persie, Shaqueel, a striker who has been causing waves in Dutch youth football with Feyenoord stepping up to that club's first team. 

Marcelo Vieira's boy Enzo Alves Vieira is also gaining a reputation as a reliable battering ram of a centre forward with an eye for goal in Real Madrid's La Fábrica academy, not forgetting Kai Rooney son of former Manchester United great and that club's all-time highest goalscorer Wayne Rooney who is also making his way through the famed Manchester United academy at Carrington. 

There is also Cristiano Ronaldo Junior who has scored goals everywhere he has followed his father, from the youth academy of Juventus to that of Manchester United and now Al Nassr in oil rich Saudi Arabia, while clips of Lionel Messi's son Matheo dribbling past opponents and scoring goals are fast becoming an internet sensation.

In recent weeks videos of Brazilian great Ricardo Kaká's 16-year-old son Luca Celico Leite surfaced on X as he glided across the pitch with the similar elegance, grace, and poise of his old man in what appeared to be a training session.

Unfortunately, there are also those who have not managed to match the dizzying heights scaled by their illustrious dads, with Zinedine Zidane's oldest son Enzo Fernández having just recently retired, aged 29, following a rather disappointing journeyman career that had promised much at La Fábrica, only for the weight of expectation to prove too much for the younger Zidane to bear.

His brothers Luca, a goalkeeper at Granada, Theo, a central midfielder with Cordoba, both play in the Spanish second tier, and Elyaz, a centre back with Real Betis' B side, also came through the Real Madrid youth system, but none of them look like emulating Zizou.

David Beckham's 22-year-old son, Romeo, recently hung up his boots after failing to crack it as a senior pro, having spent a year at Arsenal's academy and making 26 appearances for the second team at his father's club Inter Miami before making a switch to Brentford. He retired without making a single appearance for The Bees.

Despite spending a short time at La Masia, Brazilian dribbling wizard Ronaldinho's 20-year-old João Mendes, also does not look like coming anything close to matching the dazzling talents possessed by his father.

Mendes is currently on the books of English Championship side Burnley where he has yet to feature for the first team.

Although it is given that they will not all succeed, we as fans of the Beautiful Game can only hope to see more sons of our favourite stars making it to the highest level, of course only on merit, so we can witness the continuation of their fathers' legacies and to help us reminisce over the good old times when their old men helped etch long lasting smiles on our faces as kids.

** Samkelo Mtshali is a writer and avid football lover. He writes in his personal capacity. 

** The views expressed herein are not necessarily those of IOL/Independent Media.

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