Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea, Wayne Rooney to Man United and Ian Rush to Liverpool: 10 teen transfers

Chelsea have agreed a deal to sign Anderlecht's 18-year-old striker Romelu Lukaku, for a fee that's likely to be upwards of £20m, but paying out big money for a teenage sensation can have mixed results…

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WAYNE HARRISON: OLDHAM TO LIVERPOOL

At £250,000 Harrison became the most expensive 17-year-old footballer in the world when Liverpool signed him in 1985. Harrison had only made five first team appearances for the Latics, though it included a virtuoso performance against the Reds in an FA Youth Cup match. However, injuries wrecked any chance of appearing in a competitive match for Liverpool. First came a horrid fall through a greenhouse where he almost died as a result of loss of blood. A double hernia, cartilage, knee and shoulder injuries further hampered his Anfield career and, in 1990, he shattered cruciate ligaments in his knee. The 22-year-old – who had had 23 operations – was forced to give up the dream.

RONALDO: CRUZEIRO TO PSV EINDHOVEN

Dutch side PSV Eindhoven paid Cruzeiro £4m for the 17-year-old hotshot in 1994. Ronaldo, who had netted 12 times in 14 games in Brazil, continued his scoring run upon his arrival after being a non-playing squad member at the World Cup, contributing 42 goals in 46 Eredivisie matches. It was enough for Barcelona to spend around £12m on him while still a teenager, following in the footsteps of his Brazil team-mate Romario from PSV to the Nou Camp. His goalscoring exploits continued at Inter, Real Madrid and Milan, however, so did his injury problems and he eventually returned to Brazil with Corinthians where he retired in 2011.

JOHN HARTSON: LUTON TO ARSENAL

Gunners boss George Graham paid Luton Town £2.5m for their 19-year-old striker in 1995 and between joining and his departure to West Ham in 1997, Hartson scored 17 times in 55 starts for Arsenal. He also starred for Wimbledon, Coventry and Celtic where he spent five years before finishing his career at West Brom. He won the biggest battle of his life after suffering testicular cancer, which spread to his lungs and brain and after making a remarkable recovery the Welshman has set up the to raise awareness and support for testicular cancer.

IAN RUSH: CHESTER TO LIVERPOOL

Liverpool picked up the skinny 18-year-old for just £300,000 from Chester in 1980, a bargain in today's market considering his 346 goals in 660 games, though it took him nine matches to get going. He formed a memorable partnership with current Reds boss Kenny Dalglish and in the 1983/84 season scored an incredible 47 goals as Liverpool won an unprecedented treble of League, European Cup and League Cup. Juventus paid £3.2m for him in 1987 and he scored 13 goals in his only season in Italy, making him the club's top scorer, but returned to Anfield in 1988. He eventually surpassed Roger Hunt's 245 goals to become the Reds record hitman.

Jermaine Pennant: Notts County TO ARSENAL

Arsenal paid Notts County £2.5m in 1999 for the 15-year-old midfielder, which was a record for a trainee. After the youngster's two spells on loan at Watford and a substitute appearance for the Gunners against Middlesbrough when he was just 16, he scored a hat-trick for Arsene Wenger's side on his full Premier League debut against Southampton in May 2003. Disciplinary problems, including serving 31 days of three-month prison sentence while at Birmingham in 2005, has seen him play for six clubs since leaving north London to join the Blues. He's now plying his trade at Stoke and was a runner-up in the 2011 FA Cup final.

Gareth Bale: SOUTHAMPTON TO TOTTENHAM

At 16 Bale became the second youngest player after Theo Walcott to play for Southampton when he made his debut against Millwall. His efforts on the south coast were enough to persuade Spurs to spend £5m on him a year later, fending off interest from Man United. Since then Europe's elite have been circling White Hart Lane in attempt to prize the PFA Player of the Year away from Tottenham, following the Wales star's mercurial displays and impressive goals in the Champions League.

STEVE MACKENZIE: Crystal Palace TO MAN CITY

MacKenzie was just a 17-year-old trainee when City decided to spend £250,000 on the Palace midfielder in 1979. He was yet to play a Football League game so it was a huge gamble, however, he was able to show his class in the 1981 FA Cup final. Despite Ricky Villa's solo stunner, MacKenzie's rocket is the better finish even if City ended as runners-up. Stints at Charlton, Sheffield Wednesday and Shrewsbury Town followed his time at Maine Road.

CLIVE ALLEN: QPR TO ARSENAL

Nineteen-year-old goal machine Allen had managed 32 goals in 49 league games for the west London club when Arsenal spent £1.25m on him in 1980. He didn't stay long at Highbury, however, and two months later he was off to Crystal Palace with left-back Kenny Sansom moving in the opposite direction. Sansom became a Gunners legend, while Allen went on to become an unstoppable goalscorer for rivals Spurs (112 in 173 including 49 in the 1986/87 season). This was after Palace and another spell at QPR. He is now a coach at Tottenham.

Wayne Rooney: EVERTON TO MAN UNITED

The deal was worth a staggering £27m to the Toffees in 2004, who were paid an initial £20m with the rest depending on the 18-year-old striker's appearances and achievements. He scored a hat-trick against Fenerbahce on his club debut and ,along with fellow teenager Cristiano Ronaldo – who had been bought for £12m a year earlier – led the attack for Man United as the club won a hat-trick of titles and the Champions League, before the Portuguese's £80m transfer to Real Madrid in 2009. Rooney is still going strong at United and took home the PFA and Football Writers' Player of the year after the 2009/10 season, where he also scored 35 in 56 games. His tally so far: 147 in 322 and counting...

Aaron Ramsey: Cardiff City TO ARSENAL

Arsene Wenger was convinced enough to shell out £5m for the 17-year-old Welsh midfielder in 2008, despite featuring for the Bluebirds on just 22 occasions. Man United were in the hunt, too, but the Wales star has claimed Wenger was a big factor in deciding his future lay at the Emirates Stadium. He suffered a broken leg in February 2010 after a tackle by Stoke's Ryan Shawcross and has only recently returned to action for club and country following loan spells at Forest and Cardiff.