'The Boy's A Bit Special' Portugal teenager with shades of Manchester City legend an outside bet for World Cup spotlight

When 5ft 6in Rodrigo Mora scored on his first FC Porto start at the age of 17, he was hoisted like a marionette by teammate, 6ft 4in Samu Aghehowa.

Size plays a big part in Mora's game - and it does in this feature, too.

How often have we heard tales of players who were overlooked due to their diminutive stature or their inability to impact matches physically? Mora's talent is such that he has rarely needed to engage in the more industrial parts of the game.

Rodrigo Mora has hit 12 goals in 45 senior appearances for FC Porto

From an early age, the teenager has superseded peers with his technical ability and eye for a pass.

That is no more evident than in his performances at youth international level; he has excelled at Under-15, U16, U17 and now for the U21s, having leapfrogged several age groups on the back of a stellar first senior campaign.

In particular, Mora's display at the 2024 UEFA Under-17 European Championship earned him the Golden Ball; he scored five goals and provided two assists en route to defeat in the final by Italy.

And the season before last, Mora finished joint-top scorer in the UEFA Youth League, netting seven times as Porto were knocked out on penalties in the semi-final.

Last year, the teenager hit double figures for Porto and was subsequently called up to Roberto Martinez's senior Portugal squad for the UEFA Nations League Finals over the summer.

Should he continue in the same vein during 2025/26, he stands a real chance of making the World Cup squad.

In many ways, Mora is a throwback to the archetypal European No.10 - short and slippery, sporting flowing, auburn locks, receiving between lines, ducking and weaving through pressure. If a footballer could quite literally dribble between an opposing player's legs, Mora is perhaps the closest thing to achieving it.

Balance and composure in the final third are what he's all about; Mora is alarmingly active in attacking spaces and almost immediately became a touchpoint for his Porto teammates to find inside the area. In danger zones, the 18-year-old is an all-rounder, blessed with confidence in abundance.

Boyish looks, a crab-like ability to protect possession in tight spaces, both-footed and a stylistic resemblance to David Silva, Mora is - how they say in Portuguese - un craque.