Iliman Ndiaye, Harlem Globetrotters-Level Moves and Sobering Football Statistics

IS THERE REALLY A POSSIBILITY?

If you haven’t seen the clip of Iliman Ndiaye executing a unusual dribbling move at Everton’s training ground, you should check it out. In executing a move so spectacular that it would have been appropriate at a Harlem Globetrotters friendly display, the skill instantly ended what was meant to be a lighthearted kickabout to wrap up 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 competed in amateur leagues directly before being recruited by Sheffield United at 19, is ideally suited to address this topic. “Avoid dwelling on the rejection and one day your luck is going to arrive,” he advised a young player just before executing said impressive trick on his opponent, in doing so clearly demonstrating the gap between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye is far from the only professional footballer to take things that little bit too far. A younger Michael Owen gleefully humiliating a young shot-stopper in front of a smouldering Neville Southall is undoubtedly the prime example in this particular niche – but the former Liverpool man 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 disgrace caption – “difficulty breeds resilience” – and the accompanying hashtag of #friendship.

Kagawa’s former Dortmund teammates Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the manners to suffer a loss against 100 children when the trio lined up during the interval of their final match for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that contained Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were more competitive when they took on 109 Chinese kids in a like situation. But back to the start, it’s calculated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing competitive youth leagues in England will ever appear in the Premier League, a harsh truth for young players across the country.

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FEATURED STATEMENT

“Football took me but it never left me because I never gave up on my goal. I went from place to place. The passion for soccer propels you. I couldn’t always see where it was leading me. But today I have the solution” – head coach Veljko Paunovic takes time out from his training to reflect on his path.

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“Regarding Wythenshawe FC, I remember many years ago playing for a Sunday, very casual team, Turnpike Lane Hibs, on Clapham Common. One morning a bloke known as ‘Danny’ turned up to play. I have no idea who recruited him. Reportedly he was an actor; he had a good left side. (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 nearing eight decades, while the least experienced are in their twenties. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a straightforward principle regarding the ability standard: you can be speedy or technical, but preferably not simultaneously. We sometimes have players who disregard this principle, but usually succeed in bringing them to our standard over time” – Lars Esbjerg.