6 Players Who Have Gone Through the Best Transformations in Their Careers

Footballers will rarely thrive if aren't continually looking to better themselves, physically, technically and mentally..

It's all about transforming into something bigger and better to reach the very top.

Aritz Aduriz 

At some point around his 31st birthday, something clicked for Athletic Bilbao hero Aritz Aduriz. The veteran striker has enjoyed five incredible seasons since returning to the Basque club for a second spell and has scored more than half his career goals in just the last five years.

It took some time, but Aduriz has transformed into the clinical striker every forward strives to be. He scored as many as 36 times last season at the age of 35, a far cry from the single figure returns he was managing for Bilbao in his mid-twenties.

Victor Moses

Victor Moses has transformed his career fortunes this season through sheer hard work and dedication, proving himself to be an invaluable member of a Chelsea squad destined to recapture the Premier League title.

After ultimately disappointing loan spells at Liverpool, Stoke and West Ham, Moses' Chelsea career looked to be over when Antonio Conte, only for the new manager to change his position and watch the Nigerian wide-man flourish as a wing-back.

READ ALSO : Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player in history to score 100 European club goals.

Antonio Valencia

Such is Antonio Valencia's transformation in recent years, the Manchester United player is no longer considered a 'makeshift' right-back, but one of the very best full-backs in the Premier League who might count himself unlucky not to be selected for the 2016/17 Team of the Year.

Valencia has always been strong and athletic, a perfect Jose Mourinho player in that sense, but he's added defensive intelligence to his game to completely redefine his role on the pitch.

Arturo Vidal

A young Arturo Vidal arrived in Europe from South America as just a shadow of the fearsome and intimidating midfield force that he is for Bayern Munich today.

Now heavily tattooed and sporting an aggressive Mohawk, the Chilean looked much more innocent back then, even if his tackles still carried plenty of bite. These days, Vidal strikes fear into his opponents before they've even walked onto the pitch.

Gareth Bale

As a skinny 17-year-old, Gareth Bale was hardly noticeable when he joined Tottenham from Southampton back in 2007. But by the time he got to his second season at Real Madrid, the Welsh superstar had transformed himself into a supreme physical specimen.

In Spain, he's added muscle mass and great physical strength to an already stellar array of technical attributes to undoubtedly become one of the best players in the world.

Cristiano Ronaldo

A shirt-less Ronaldo celebrating after scoring in the 2014 Champions League final remains one of modern football's most iconic and enduring images.

Much like Real Madrid team-mate Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo has undergone an incredible physical transformation over the years after leaving behind his ungainly teenage frame and developing into a well oiled physical machine.