🔗 Share this article

COULD IT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

If you haven’t seen the clip of Iliman Ndiaye performing a unusual dribbling move at Everton’s training ground, it’s a good watch. By pulling off a move so spectacular that it would have been appropriate at a Harlem Globetrotters exhibition match, the skill quickly concluded what was meant to be a casual practice to finish what had been – up to that point – an illuminating interview about how amateur players can get another opportunity after being dropped from professional academies.

Ndiaye, who featured in non-league games directly before being picked up by Sheffield United at 19, is ideally suited to discuss this topic. “Don’t concentrate on the rejection and one day your luck is going to materialize,” he told a young player shortly before deploying said spectacular skill on his opponent, in doing so vividly showing the gap between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye isn’t the first professional footballer to push the boundaries. A younger Michael Owen cheerfully overwhelming a 13-year-old goalkeeper in front of a annoyed Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this specific category – but the ex-Anfield star is just one of many culprits. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have made young children cry with a series of harsh skills, although it’s believed that the latter was at least motivated by the Japanese player’s social media apologetic post – “difficulty breeds resilience” – and the related tag of #friendship.

Kagawa’s ex-BVB colleagues Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the decency to be defeated against 100 children when the three lined up during the interval of their last appearance for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that contained Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso showed less mercy when they faced 109 Chinese kids in a like situation. But returning to the beginning, it’s calculated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing organized youth football in England will ever appear in the Premier League, a sobering statistic for aspiring footballers across the country.

STREAMING ON POPULAR SITE

Tune in with Scott Murray from 7.45pm GMT for live international football action of England versus Serbia, while Luke McLaughlin will be tracking events for the remaining evening matches.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Soccer carried me but it never abandoned me because I never stopped believing. I went from place to place. The love of football carries you. I couldn’t always see where it was directing me. But today I have the answer” – Serbia coach Veljko Paunovic pauses briefly from his preparations to share his path.

FAN FEEDBACK

“Pleasant to learn that Kevin Mac Allister will be included by Argentina. Hopefully, if he participates in the major tournament next year, he’ll study how to navigate the venue locations – wouldn’t want him to end up lost in New York” – James Humphries.

“Sources state that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been prohibited due to alleged involvement in a betting scandal. It would be fantastic if that number could be bumped up to the same level of typical pedantry associated with Football Daily – that is, 1,057 readers. By my calculation, that’s about 33 more pedants. If I agree to be excluded from playing professionally in Turkey (not a huge sacrifice at my age and, um, ability), are there 32 more folks willing to join in my search for balance?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a frequent consumer and Florida resident, can I in advance protest about the coming period of published letters about which route one uses to get to various locations in your homeland? I mean, I was delayed in congestion on I-4 at 2am on a Tuesday night driving through Orlando once, but that’s the whole story. There’s no satisfying lesson to the tale. (I-4 joins Tampa on the Gulf Coast to Daytona on the Atlantic via Orlando/Walt Disney World, and can have congestion problems at any time)” – Rasteen Nowroozi.

“Concerning Wythenshawe FC, I remember many years ago playing for a Sunday, very casual team, Turnpike Lane Hibs, on Clapham Common. One morning a bloke introduced as ‘Danny’ turned up to play. I have no idea who invited him. Supposedly he was an actor; he had a decent left foot. (Yes, Daniel Day-Lewis)” – Jason Steger.

“Together with some associates and companions, I play a game of football each Friday afternoon. Our oldest player is approaching eighty, while the youngest are in their twenties. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a basic guideline regarding the skill level: you can be fast or skilled, but ideally not both. We periodically have players who break this guideline, but usually typically reduce them to our quality over time” – Lars Esbjerg.