Leeds United reaping the benefits of 18-year-old wonderkid

If Ronaldo Vieira wasn't a name that most football fans were familiar with coming into the 2016/17 campaign, it certainly is now.

Born in 1998, the year of the World Cup, and named after THE famous Ronaldo, he had a lot to live up to. You wouldn't have guessed his parents were football fanatics, though, they named his twin brother Romario.

The Leeds United midfielder has taken the Championship by storm this season after coming from the relatively unknown to making himself one of Garry Monk's most consistent performer's, week in week out in a side very much challenging for automatic promotion.

The rise of Vieira has been rapid, much like the rise of Leeds themselves this season, since breaking into the first team in pre-season, and at just 18 years of age, the former Benfica midfielder has a very promising future ahead of him.

And development coach Simon Collins has revealed this week how it could have been oh so different for the Bissau-Guinean.

Collins, who used to ply his trade at Manchester City, has revealed that Vieira very nearly signed for The Citizens, where he was on trial, before completing a move to Yorkshire.

As Ronaldo struggled with this English, Romario would often help him out with the negotiation side of things.

"Romario was the organizer and they needed organizing, they were living in Birstall, just off the M621, so getting to training meant taxis, buses, all of that. It was like that for them right up until Leeds took them on," Collins told the Yorkshire evening post.

The trial at Manchester City didn't work out and Leeds are obviously now reaping the benefits of that. If you look at the likes of Jack Rodwell and Scott Sinclair - young, promising talent who's development only went backward at City, it probably isn't the worst thing in the world in didn't work out in Manchester for Ronaldo.

Premier League outfit Hull City were also interested in the midfielder but didn't want to cover the cost of his travel expenses, oh how they could regret that decision in a few years to come if Vieira carries on improving at the rate he is.

Vieira has been a massive part of the success story that is Leeds United this season and has been attracting plaudits from all angles of late, most recently from Derby boss Steve McClaren, who has tipped the gifted youngster to have a wonderful career.

Vieira put in a man of the match performance as Leeds beat Derby County 1-0 at Elland Road to go third in The Championship.

McClaren said: "(Ronaldo) Vieira, wow. At 18 years old he's got a bright future. He ran the show tonight and gave us a bit of a lesson."

Vieira will be hoping for more of the same on Saturday when his Leeds side go to Barnsley in the Yorkshire derby.