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By SAM BROOKES Published: 03: 31 AEDT, 3 April 2025 | Updated: 03: 31 AEDT, 3 April 2025 4 View comments Joao Felix was once touted as football's biggest prospect. After bursting onto the scene in Portugal, it wasn't long before comparisons with his fellow countryman Cristiano Ronaldo were made. Atletico Madrid certainly believed the hype, forking out £114m to sign Felix from Benfica in 2019 - the same year he won the Golden Boy award - making him the most expensive teenager ever in the process. But, a little under six years later, Felix's career only appears to be going one way after hitting a new low on Sunday. The 25-year-old forward - who has cost clubs £171m in transfer fees - was involved in a heated exchange with England's Kyle Walker as AC Milan emerged from the tunnel for the second half of their Serie A clash with Napoli. Milan were 2-0 down at the time, and Walker pulled no punches as he told Felix: 'Pass the ball, we are not Messi! ' The brutal advice appeared to fall on deaf ears as Felix was hauled off just 10 minutes later, with Milan going on to lose 2-1 in Naples. Joao Felix was berated by Kyle Walker as they emerged for the second half of AC Milan's game against Napoli on Sunday Felix has failed to impress since joining Milan on loan at the start of February Felix has also underwhelmed during two separate spells at Chelsea, and still has five years left on his deal at Stamford Bridge That incident sums up Felix's miserable spell in Milan since he joined the Italian giants on loan from Chelsea in February. Felix scored on his Milan debut in the Coppa Italia, but has not found the net again. It did not take long for the Italian media to turn on him, as he was singled out for criticism after a 2-1 defeat by Bologna in late February. After giving him a 4. 5 match rating, Corriere della Serra wrote on Felix's performance: 'The worst on the field. You can't see him, you can't hear him. Never a play, even his own players avoid him. ' Italian journalist Fabio Ravezzani added on X: 'Everything is going wrong at Milan. Joao Felix is as handsome as he is useless, Malick Thiaw is no better than and taking off Rafael Leao, unless he is injured, is foolish. ' It had been hoped that Felix's temporary switch to Milan - which included a £5m loan fee - could get his career back on track after underwhelming at Chelsea. The Blues clearly saw potential when they first signed Felix in a £9m loan deal back in January 2023. But he was sent off on his debut against Fulham, and finished the campaign with four goals in 20 appearances. It was not enough to earn him a permanent move. Yet Chelsea returned for Felix the following year after the Portuguese star had shown some promising signs during a loan spell at Barcelona and paid £43m to bring him to Stamford Bridge on a six-year deal. Joao Felix fell out with Diego Simeone after the Atletico manager appeared to question his commitment Felix also struggled to convince Enzo Maresca that he deserved more game time at Chelsea Felix was behind Cole Palmer in the pecking order for the first half of the season, and that looks unlikely to change if he does return to Chelsea this summer It seemed a strange move on Chelsea's part to tie down Felix down to such a long-term contract, and less than six months later he was sent on his way to Milan after failing to break into Enzo Maresca's starting XI consistently. The Italian boss insisted Felix was just unlucky to find himself behind Cole Palmer in the pecking order, but Chelsea did not try particularly hard to keep him at the start of the year. Indeed, failing to convince managers has become a trend for Felix over the years. When Atletico splashed the cash to take him to Spain in 2019, it was believed that he could be the player to add stardust to a team that already had grit and work ethic in abundance under Diego Simeone. But things just never clicked for Felix at Atletico. He never managed to hit double figures in his four seasons in La Liga, and Simeone raised concerns about the rising star back in 2020. 'As well as talent you need to have commitment, ' Simeone explained when talking about Felix. 'When a player realises why he is playing for Atletico then everything comes together. ' Felix would stay at Atletico for another three years after those Simeone remarks, but, in hindsight, that was arguably the beginning of the end of their relationship. Eventually, Simeone lost patience with Felix and he was shipped out to Chelsea, before briefly returning to Spain to play for Barcelona, then back to west London and finally on to Milan. Wherever he has gone, Felix has proved to be a misfit and he is once again stuck in limbo heading into the summer. Felix's agent, Jorge Mendes (pictured) has reportedly been in contact with Galatasaray over a potential transfer this summer Felix is running out of chances to prove he can ever live up to his potential Milan are not expected to extend his stay beyond the end of the season, and it is difficult to see him getting back into Maresca's Chelsea team. A report from Turkish outlet Sport last week claimed his agent, Jorge Mendes, has been in contact with Galatasaray over a potential transfer. It is understood that Felix would be keen on the move, and that Chelsea would be unlikely to stand in his way. But the Blues would be expected to want close to the £43m they paid for him given Felix still has five years left on his contract, while he also earns close to £7m-a-year in wages. Could Galatasaray meet those demands? It has been some fall from grace for Felix, who was seen as the obvious heir to Ronaldo's throne as Portugal's biggest superstar when he broke through at Benfica. Instead, he has lurched from one disastrous move to another, costing clubs a fortune along the way. His career is in danger of completely unravelling, and Felix is running out of chances to prove he can ever become the world-class player he appeared destined to be.
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