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COULD IT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

If you haven’t seen the footage of Iliman Ndiaye pulling off a backwards bouncing trick at Everton’s training ground, you should check it out. Through performing a move so spectacular that it would have fit right in at a Harlem Globetrotters exhibition match, the skill instantly ended what was meant to be a lighthearted kickabout to wrap up what had been – up to that point – an informative discussion about how Sunday league footballers 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 expertly placed to address this topic. “Don’t concentrate on the rejection and one day your luck is going to come through,” he advised a young player immediately prior to deploying said spectacular skill on his opponent, in doing so perfectly illustrating the gulf between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye joins a list of professional footballer to take things that little bit too far. A younger Michael Owen cheerfully overwhelming a teenage keeper in front of a smouldering Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this specific category – but the one-time Reds forward is just one of many culprits. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have made young children cry with a series of merciless tricks, although it’s considered that the latter was at least driven by the Japanese player’s social media apologetic post – “setbacks build character” – and the associated label of #friendship.

Kagawa’s former Dortmund teammates Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the good grace to lose their match against 100 children when the three lined up during the interval of their final match for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that featured Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were not so generous when they faced 109 Chinese kids in a like situation. But coming full circle, it’s approximated that only 180 of the 1.5 million boys currently playing structured junior soccer in England will ever play in the Premier League, a harsh truth for young players across the country.

BROADCAST ON MAJOR PLATFORM

Tune in with Scott Murray from evening UK time for live international football action of England versus Serbia, while Luke McLaughlin will be monitoring the action for the rest of the night’s action.

FEATURED STATEMENT

“The game guided me but it never deserted me because I never abandoned my dream. I went from location to location. The love of football drives you. I couldn’t always see where it was leading me. But today I have the answer” – head coach Veljko Paunovic makes time from his preparations to share his journey.

FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS

“Pleasant to learn that Kevin Mac Allister won’t be excluded by Argentina. Ideally, if he travels to the international competition next year, he’ll read up on how to navigate the tournament sites – 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 prohibited due to potential connection in a betting scandal. It would be amazing if that number could be increased to the same level of typical pedantry associated with Football Daily – that is, 1,057 readers. By my math, that’s about 33 more pedants. If I volunteer to be banned from playing professionally in Turkey (not much of a loss at my age and, um, talent), are there 32 more folks willing to participate in my quest for harmony?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a regular follower and Florida resident, can I in advance protest about the upcoming week-plus of published letters about which highway one uses to get to various locations in your homeland? 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 entire tale. There’s no rewarding moral to the tale. (I-4 links 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 known as ‘Danny’ turned up to play. I have no idea who invited him. Reportedly he was an actor; he had a good left side. (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 youngest are in their young adulthood. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a simple rule of thumb regarding the quality of player: you can be fast or skilled, but ideally not both. We occasionally have players who break this guideline, but usually manage to drag them down to our level over time” – Lars Esbjerg.