To mark their own 10th birthday, and perhaps to remind us all of just how far they've come in that time, Google has made their oldest surviving index of the internet available to search here.
It's very strange to step back to a world before 9/11, youtube or the i-pod, never mind – gasp – our own Row ZZ. This is a time when the name “Barack Obama” appeared on just 671 web pages, while “Sarah Palin” does not even return a single result. 2001 is both a short and a strangely long time ago, and nowhere is the latter more true than in the world of football.
This is a time where a search for “Lionel Messi” returns a single result; as does “Emmanuel Adebayor”. So too, amazingly, “Theo Walcott”: 'Theo Walcott says "I play for Southampton Academy under 12's”'. “Cristiano Ronaldo” will deliver you seven reports of the young winger's progress in the Sporting Lisbon academy.
Football is clearly a game in which news moves fast, but it's striking that, even back when these players (who now return a combined twenty billion pages) were only just into their teens, and the internet itself was some way from the presence it is today, there were just a few people out there who were already becoming aware of their remarkable talents.
This is the dream of fantasy sports: to be the one competitor who becomes aware of the talent before it shows itself to its fullest. In tribute to the ten people who knew enough about the potential of those players, and of the internet, to combine the two, here is the Boot Room's list of 5 players who have already gone from anonymity to top fantasy value, and 5 who may be on the verge of the journey...
5 you're too late to hear about
• Amr Zaki (FW, Wigan): Zaki's average draft position was outside the top 140 players, but he now sits on top of both the Premier League scoring charts and the Roto FC index of fantasy value. The powerful Egyptian striker is showing technique to match his strength, and has used that to produce more shots than any other player has had, as many shots on target, and sure enough, more goals.
• Denilson (MID, Arsenal): On draft day, Denilson had started eight league games for Arsenal, and was taken at an average draft position of 156. Seven weeks later, he is the third most valuable player in this season's fantasy game, and a fixture in the Gunners' midfield. His fine passing game was a given for an Arsenal academy graduate, but his ability to dictate the game in Fabregas' absence, create chances and even get into the box to finish moves himself have been surprises – to most managers.
• Jonathan Greening (MID, West Brom): The onetime Manchester United youth player never made it at Old Trafford, but the talent which United coaches saw in him years ago is now in evidence in a very mature midfield performer. A cautious user of the ball with a very high pass completion rate, Greening is currently eighth on our player rater.
• Shaun Wright-Phillips (MID, Manchester City): Drafted as a bench player in both leagues, the resurgence of the elder Wright-Phillips brother is proof that there really is no place like home. Only eight players have delivered more to their fantasy owners.
• Scott Carson (GK, West Brom): Taken deep in drafts as a second keeper, only Petr Cech has so far done more for your fantasy team, when paired with an average GK. Jose Reina and Edwin Van Der Sar have marginally higher save percentages, but Carson has made a league-leading 26 stops while conceding only 7 times. Most impressive is that Carson has played three games away from home, while conceding just once – in the fourth minute of the first game.
5 you can catch if you're quick
• Carlos Villanueva (MID, Blackburn): Manager Paul Ince has been easing his Chilean wing-forward into English football, but the talented player is rapidly approaching first team status. He marked his first league start this weekend with the beautifully flighted delivery that gave Blackburn the lead over Newcastle, as Christopher Samba provided the headed finish.
• Rafael Da Silva (DEF, Man Utd): Rafael and his brother Fabio are the Neville brothers mark II, only with a Samba twist. The Brazilian twins are the future of the full-back positions at Old Trafford, and Rafael, as well as seeing plenty of action in pre-season, made Alex Ferguson's starting XI for the Champions League tie against Aalborg this week, ahead of Gary Neville and Wes Brown.
• Freddy Sears (FW, West Ham): With Dean 'Anderton' Ashton out for several months, Sears becomes a key member of Gianfranco Zola's attacking options. Used this year as a substitute, Sears has been unable to add to the goal he scored on debut last campaign. However, the young striker made waves at Upton Park last year, scoring 25 goals in 24 games for the West Ham academy and reserve teams, and could make an exciting impact on the league as the season wears on.
• Frazier Campbell (FW, Tottenham): Spurs assistant manager Gus Poyet has said of late that the club management would prefer to play with two strikers, rather than leave Roman Pavlyuchenko or Darren Bent unsupported up front. However, the Uruguayan went on to admit that it is “difficult” to play Pavlyuchenko and Bent alongside each other, suggesting that the young Campbell, on loan from Manchester United, may see plenty of playing time. The man with the least popular surname in N17 has made some exciting cameos for the lilywhites, setting up a goal on his debut against Wisla Krakow in the UEFA Cup.
• Valero Borja (MID, West Brom): While his countrymen were triumphing at Euro 2008, the quiet Spanish playmaker with shades of Mikel Arteta in his game arrived at The Hawthorns this summer for a club record fee of £4.7million, but attracted very little coverage. A little hesitant in his early games, the 23 year-old product of the Real Madrid cantoneira is fast settling into Tony Mowbray's team and produced a fine display at the weekend. Borja has created 11 attempts in the past two games.
By Sandy King
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