Iliman Ndiaye, Harlem Globetrotters-Level Skills and Sobering Football Stats

IS THERE REALLY A POSSIBILITY?

Unless you’ve missed the video of Iliman Ndiaye performing a unusual dribbling move at Everton’s training ground, it’s a good watch. Through performing a move so nasty that it would have been appropriate at a Harlem Globetrotters show game, the skill instantly ended what was meant to be a casual practice to conclude what had been – up to that point – an revealing conversation about how Sunday league footballers can get another opportunity after being dropped from professional academies.

Ndiaye, who competed in amateur leagues directly before being recruited by Sheffield United at 19, is perfectly positioned to address this topic. “Don’t focus on the rejection and one day your luck is going to come through,” he informed a young player shortly before deploying said spectacular skill on his opponent, in doing so perfectly illustrating the gap between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye isn’t the first professional footballer to go slightly overboard. A younger Michael Owen gleefully humiliating a teenage keeper in front of a annoyed Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this specific category – but the former Liverpool man is just one of many culprits. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have caused kids to weep with a series of brutal nutmegs, although it’s considered that the latter was at least driven by the Japanese player’s social media regretful message – “setbacks build character” – and the related tag of #friendship.

Kagawa’s former Dortmund teammates Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the decency to suffer a loss against 100 children when the trio played during the half-time break of their final match for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that contained Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were more competitive when they faced 109 Chinese kids in a comparable scenario. But coming full circle, it’s estimated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing competitive youth leagues in England will ever feature in the Premier League, a sobering statistic for young players across the country.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Soccer carried me but it never abandoned me because I never gave up on my goal. I went from place to place. The devotion to the game drives you. I couldn’t always see where it was directing me. But today I have the answer” – national team manager Veljko Paunovic makes time from his planning to discuss his career.

FAN FEEDBACK

“Nice to hear that Kevin Mac Allister isn’t going to be left home alone by Argentina. Hopefully, if he participates in the international competition next year, he’ll research how to navigate the host cities – let’s avoid him being disoriented in New York” – James Humphries.

“Reports indicate that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been prohibited due to alleged involvement in a gambling controversy. It would be fantastic if that number could be raised to the same level of characteristic precision associated with Football Daily – that is, 1,057 readers. By my calculation, that’s about 33 more detail-oriented individuals. If I volunteer to be banned from playing professionally in Turkey (not much of a loss at my age and, um, skill level), are there 32 more folks willing to join in my search for symmetry?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a daily reader and Florida resident, can I proactively complain about the coming period of published letters about which highway one uses to get to various locations in your country? I mean, I was caught in a traffic jam on I-4 at 2am on a Tuesday night driving through Orlando once, but that’s the complete account. There’s no meaningful conclusion 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 recollect many years ago playing for a Sunday, very social side, Turnpike Lane Hibs, on Clapham Common. One morning a bloke known as ‘Danny’ turned up to play. I have no idea who recruited him. Apparently he was an actor; he had a good left side. (Yes, Daniel Day-Lewis)” – Jason Steger.

“Together with some co-workers and mates, I play a game of football each Friday afternoon. Our most experienced participant is pushing 80, while the most junior are in their late-20s. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a simple rule of thumb regarding the skill level: you can be quick or talented, but ideally not both. We occasionally have players who violate this rule, but usually manage to drag them down to our level over time” – Lars Esbjerg.