🔗 Share this article

COULD IT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

Unless you’ve missed the clip of Iliman Ndiaye pulling off a unusual dribbling move at Everton’s training ground, you should check it out. In executing a move so nasty that it would have suited perfectly at a Harlem Globetrotters show game, the skill immediately shut down what was meant to be a casual practice to conclude what had been – up to that point – an informative discussion about how amateur players can earn a second chance after being dropped from professional academies.

Ndiaye, who played Sunday League football directly before being recruited by Sheffield United at 19, is ideally suited to discuss this topic. “Don’t focus on the rejection and one day your luck is going to arrive,” he advised a young player immediately prior to deploying said ninja move on his victim, in doing so vividly showing the gap between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye is far from the only professional footballer to go slightly overboard. A younger Michael Owen happily embarrassing a young shot-stopper in front of a smouldering Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this particular niche – but the ex-Anfield star is far from the only offender. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have reduced toddlers to actual tears with a series of brutal nutmegs, although it’s believed that the latter was at least inspired by the Japanese player’s social media regretful message – “difficulty breeds resilience” – and the associated label of #friendship.

Kagawa’s previous Borussia partners Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the manners to lose their match against 100 children when the trio competed during the interval of their final match for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that contained Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were not so generous when they played against 109 Chinese kids in a similar experiment. But returning to the beginning, it’s approximated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing structured junior soccer in England will ever appear in the Premier League, a sobering statistic for toddlers and teenagers across the country.

BROADCAST ON MAJOR PLATFORM

Follow Scott Murray from evening UK time for live international football action of England versus Serbia, while Luke McLaughlin will be tracking events for the rest of the night’s action.

FEATURED STATEMENT

“Football took me but it never abandoned me because I never stopped believing. I went from team to team. The passion for soccer propels you. I couldn’t always see where it was directing me. But today I have the solution” – national team manager Veljko Paunovic takes time out from his preparations to discuss his path.

FAN FEEDBACK

“Good to know that Kevin Mac Allister isn’t going to be left home alone by Argentina. Hopefully, if he participates in the Bigliest Most Peaceful Cup next year, he’ll research how to travel around the host cities – wouldn’t want him to end up lost in New York” – James Humphries.

“Reports indicate that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been banned due to alleged involvement in a wagering issue. It would be wonderful if that number could be increased 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 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 participate in my quest for harmony?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a daily reader and Florida resident, can I preemptively object about the upcoming week-plus of published letters about which route one uses to get to various locations in your country? I mean, I was stuck in gridlock 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 links Tampa on the Gulf Coast to Daytona on the Atlantic via Orlando/Walt Disney World, and can have delays at any time)” – Rasteen Nowroozi.

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

“Together with some colleagues and friends, I play a game of football each Friday afternoon. Our oldest player is pushing 80, while the most junior are in their late-20s. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a basic guideline regarding the quality of player: you can be speedy or technical, but preferably not both. We periodically have players who disregard this principle, but usually succeed in bringing them to our standard over time” – Lars Esbjerg.