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YOU’RE TELLING US THERE’S A CHANCE?

Unless you’ve missed the footage of Iliman Ndiaye pulling off a backwards bouncing trick at Everton’s training ground, it’s worth viewing. In executing a move so impressive 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 revealing conversation about how non-professionals can earn a second chance after being released by professional academies.

Ndiaye, who played Sunday League football directly before being picked up by Sheffield United at 19, is perfectly positioned to address this topic. “Don’t concentrate on the rejection and one day your luck is going to arrive,” 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 trying to bridge.

Ndiaye joins a list of professional footballer to go slightly overboard. Peak Michael Owen gleefully humiliating a 13-year-old goalkeeper in front of a fuming Neville Southall is clearly the benchmark in this unique area – but the one-time Reds forward is not alone in this. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have caused kids to weep with a series of merciless tricks, although it’s thought that the latter was at least motivated by the Japanese player’s social media disgrace caption – “difficulty breeds resilience” – and the related tag of #friendship.

Kagawa’s former Dortmund teammates Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the decency to be defeated against 100 children when the three competed during the interval of their last appearance 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 similar experiment. But coming full circle, it’s calculated 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 young players across the country.

BROADCAST ON MAJOR PLATFORM

Tune in with Scott Murray from evening UK time for real-time tournament updates of England versus Serbia, while Luke McLaughlin will be tracking events for the other games happening later.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Soccer carried me but it never left me because I never abandoned my dream. I went from location to location. The passion for soccer drives you. I couldn’t always see where it was taking me. But today I have the understanding” – Serbia coach Veljko Paunovic pauses briefly from his preparations to discuss his path.

FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS

“Pleasant to learn that Kevin Mac Allister won’t be excluded by Argentina. Hopefully, if he goes to the international competition next year, he’ll read up on how to navigate the host cities – hopefully he won’t get confused in New York” – James Humphries.

“Sources state that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been prohibited due to suspected participation in a wagering issue. It would be amazing if that number could be increased to the same level of usual detail-orientation associated with Football Daily – that is, 1,057 readers. By my math, that’s about 33 more perfectionists. If I agree to be excluded 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 balance?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a frequent consumer and Florida resident, can I proactively complain about the coming period of published letters about which road one uses to get to various locations in your country? I mean, I was delayed in congestion 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 connects 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.

“Apropos Wythenshawe FC, I recollect 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. Supposedly he was an actor; he had a decent left foot. (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 pushing 80, while the youngest are in their young adulthood. To ensure a good time for everyone, we have a straightforward principle regarding the ability standard: you can be quick or talented, but ideally not both. We periodically have players who violate this rule, but usually manage to drag them down to our level over time” – Lars Esbjerg.