3 players who can't live up to their famous fathers

Like father, like son? That's not always the case in football.

While countless footballers are the pride and joy of their families, others aren't so lucky, and find themselves with cleats that are too big to fill.

Enzo Fernandez (Zinedine Zidane)

Zinedine Zidane's son, Enzo, made his father proud when he scored on his debut for Real Madrid. The game marked the first time that the 1998 World Cup winner gave one of his four sons a chance in a competitive game, and his faith was rewarded as Los Blancos crushed Cultural y Deportiva Leonesa 6-1 in the 2016-17 Copa del Rey.

It was an impressive start to professional football for Enzo, but any suggestions that he's destined to emulate his father's career are misplaced. After all, there's a reason why he played for Real Madrid and the French U-19 team under his mother's name, Fernandez. The burden of expectations can be overwhelming, and it's not easy to take the pitch while donning your country's most celebrated name.

Enzo is blessed with many of the characteristics that defined his father. He's a midfielder who possesses quality and vision, who can play with both feet and is capable of beating opponents in one-on-one situations. He was summoned to Real Madrid's first team at just 16 years old, and it wasn't because of his name.

Unfortunately for Enzo, he'll spend his career being described as the son of the man who scored the greatest goal in a Champions League final, and live in the shadow of a three-time FIFA World Player of the Year. That doesn't mean he'll be unable to carve a path of his own and find some kind of peace. As Didier Deschamps said: "Zizou lived his life, had his career. Enzo will have his own."

Christian Maldini (Paolo Maldini)

The third generation of the Maldini dynasty will likely be the most disappointing.

When Paolo Maldini bowed out of football in 2009, there was reason to believe that his son, Christian, would keep the fairy tale going. The grandson of Cesare Maldini was only 13 years old at the time and playing for AC Milan's junior ranks. By 2016, he was captaining the Rossoneri's under-19 team, as he appeared to be on course to emulate his father's career.

But Christian is no longer walking down the beaten path. He's playing in Serie C, the third division of Italian football, and is employed as a defender at Racing Club Fondi. It's probably not what Paolo had in mind, and the bloodline's run of dominance in football appears to be over.

Niall Keown (Martin Keown)

Niall Keown, Martin Keown's son, is struggling to replicate the impact that his father made on football. He's playing at Partick Thistle rather than Arsenal, and joined the Jags from Reading, where he was an academy graduate who found himself on the fringes.

Martin attends several of Thistle's games, and Niall, who is a defender just like his father, declared: "I always appreciate his support, he and my mum always come to any game they can. Obviously he's got other commitments now he's on the other side of the camera so he often can't come to every game. Having him there is good. I obviously play in the same position as he did so he has an opinion on everything and he puts that across."

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)