Master v Apprentice: Ronaldo and Joao Felix go head-to-head in Champions League showdown

Cristiano Ronaldo goes head-to-head with his potential successor in Wednesday's Champions League action as Joao Felix and Atletico Madrid welcome Juventus to the Spanish capital.

Such has been Ronaldo's dominance over European football in the last decade or so, only Lionel Messi has proved himself capable of outshining his rival.

The pair have sparred in practically every competition in football and have gathered five Ballon d'Or awards each - but as the two elder statesmen of the football elite begin to reach the end of their careers, a host of young and up-and-coming players are putting their hands up to take their place.

One such candidate is Atletico Madrid's Portuguese teenager, Joao Felix. A new recruit to Diego Simeone's side this season, Felix made the switch to La Liga after a single season in the Benfica first team saw him score 20 goals in all competitions. It was evidence enough for Atletico Madrid to write a check for an eye-watering £113 million ($141 million) to secure his services.

AFLO / Mutsu Kawamori

On Wednesday evening Ronaldo will share a pitch with the youngster who has been ordained as his footballing heir, but can Felix emulate the Portuguese legend in just his second top-level season in the sport?

Joao Felix's rise has mirrored the same trajectory taken by Ronaldo early in his career. Back in 2003 and buoyed by a pre-season friendly in which Ronaldo tormented John O'Shea down Manchester United's right flank, Sir Alex Ferguson invested millions from the club's coffers to secure the then-18-year-old's signature. 

It proved to be one of the defining signings of Ferguson's historic reign at Old Trafford. Ronaldo rose to become the player we all know him as today in his six years in Manchester before enhancing his reputation further at Real Madrid. Nowadays, with Juventus as his home, Ronaldo's talents show no sign of fading even as he approaches his 35th birthday.

Sixteen years later, Felix appears to be at the early stage of a similar journey having been plucked from the Portuguese league as a teenager and thrust into the role of Champions League box office star - something of an inevitability given the riches Atletico Madrid parted with to sign him.

Ronaldo was summoned to Juventus (at great expense too) to secure a Champions League trophy for Italy's most dominant side, but their elimination last season came at the hands of Dutch masters Ajax in the quarterfinals, after seeing off Atletico in the last 16.

As for their play styles, it could be argued that Felix is superior to Ronaldo when he was 19-years-old. In Ronaldo's formative years he relied heavily on his pace to flummox defenders but that particular attribute is largely absent from Felix's game. Instead, Felix's style is modelled on technical superiority and his goalscoring appears at an advanced rate compared to teenage Ronaldo.

Should Felix's trajectory continue at the same rate that Ronaldo's did, we should be looking at a future superstar of world football and Ronaldo might feel like he is looking in a mirror. We will know late Wednesday evening if he likes what he sees.