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YOU’RE TELLING US THERE’S A CHANCE?

Should you have overlooked the video of Iliman Ndiaye executing a reverse bouncing nutmeg at Everton’s training ground, it’s worth viewing. 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 casual practice to conclude what had been – up to that point – an illuminating interview about how Sunday league footballers can secure a fresh start after being released by professional academies.

Ndiaye, who competed in amateur leagues directly before being recruited by Sheffield United at 19, is expertly placed to speak on this topic. “Don’t focus on the rejection and one day your luck is going to arrive,” he informed a young player shortly before executing said impressive trick on his teammate, in doing so vividly showing the gulf between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been trying to bridge.

Ndiaye is far from the only professional footballer to take things that little bit too far. A younger Michael Owen gleefully humiliating a 13-year-old goalkeeper in front of a smouldering Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this particular niche – but the former Liverpool man is not alone in this. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have made young children cry with a series of harsh skills, although it’s considered that the latter was at least motivated by the Japanese player’s social media apologetic post – “difficulty breeds resilience” – and the accompanying hashtag of #friendship.

Kagawa’s previous Borussia partners Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the good grace to lose their match against 100 children when the group competed during the mid-game pause of their final match for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that contained Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were not so generous when they took on 109 Chinese kids in a similar experiment. But back to the start, it’s estimated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing organized youth football in England will ever feature in the Premier League, a harsh truth for toddlers and teenagers across the country.

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Follow Scott Murray from 19:45 Greenwich Mean Time for live international football action of England versus Serbia, while Luke McLaughlin will be monitoring the action for the other games happening later.

DAILY HIGHLIGHT

“Football took me but it never left 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 taking me. But today I have the solution” – head coach Veljko Paunovic pauses briefly from his training to discuss his path.

FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS

“Good to know that Kevin Mac Allister will be included by Argentina. With luck, if he participates in the Bigliest Most Peaceful Cup next year, he’ll read up on how to travel around the venue locations – hopefully he won’t get confused in New York” – James Humphries.

“Reports indicate that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been banned due to potential connection in a betting scandal. 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 perfectionists. If I agree to be excluded from playing professionally in Turkey (not a huge sacrifice at my age and, um, skill level), are there 32 more folks willing to assist my effort for symmetry?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a daily reader and Florida resident, can I in advance protest about the upcoming week-plus of published letters about which route one uses to get to various locations in your island nation? I mean, I was delayed in congestion on I-4 at 2am on a Tuesday night driving through Orlando once, but that’s the entire tale. 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.

“Regarding 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 brought him along. Apparently he was an actor; he had a useful left foot. (Yes, Daniel Day-Lewis)” – Jason Steger.

“Together with some co-workers and mates, I play a game of football each Friday afternoon. Our oldest player is pushing 80, while the youngest are in their young adulthood. To ensure a positive atmosphere 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 violate this rule, but usually succeed in bringing them to our standard over time” – Lars Esbjerg.