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COULD IT ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

If you haven’t seen the clip of Iliman Ndiaye pulling off a reverse bouncing nutmeg at Everton’s training ground, it’s a good watch. Through performing a move so spectacular that it would have been appropriate at a Harlem Globetrotters exhibition match, the skill instantly ended what was meant to be a casual practice to conclude what had been – up to that point – an informative discussion about how non-professionals can earn a second chance after being dropped from professional academies.

Ndiaye, who featured in non-league games directly before being signed by Sheffield United at 19, is ideally suited to speak on this topic. “Don’t focus on the rejection and one day your luck is going to come through,” he told a young player immediately prior to deploying said spectacular skill on his teammate, in doing so clearly demonstrating the difference between Premier League and amateur footballers he had been working to minimize.

Ndiaye joins a list of professional footballer to go slightly overboard. Prime Michael Owen cheerfully overwhelming a teenage keeper in front of a annoyed Neville Southall is undoubtedly the prime example in this particular niche – but the ex-Anfield star is just one of many culprits. Both Christian Eriksen and Shinji Kagawa have reduced toddlers to actual tears with a series of merciless tricks, although it’s thought 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 ex-BVB colleagues Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski and Nuri Sahin at least had the manners to lose their match against 100 children when the trio lined up during the half-time break of their farewell game for BVB. A Real Madrid XI that featured Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso were more competitive when they took on 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 competitive youth leagues in England will ever appear in the Premier League, a harsh truth for toddlers and teenagers across the country.

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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.

DAILY HIGHLIGHT

“The game guided me but it never left me because I never abandoned my dream. I went from team to team. The devotion to the game propels you. I couldn’t always see where it was leading me. But today I have the understanding” – national team manager Veljko Paunovic pauses briefly from his training to share his career.

FAN FEEDBACK

“Nice to hear 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 – hopefully he won’t get confused in New York” – James Humphries.

“Information shows that 1,024 players in the Turkish league have been banned due to suspected participation 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 pedants. If I volunteer to be banned from playing professionally in Turkey (hardly a difficult decision at my age and, um, talent), are there 32 more folks willing to join in my search for balance?” – Mike Wilner.

“As a daily reader and Florida resident, can I in advance protest about the next several days of published letters about which road 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 complete account. There’s no meaningful conclusion 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.

“Concerning Wythenshawe FC, I recollect 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. Supposedly he was an actor; he had a good left side. (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 approaching eighty, while the most junior are in their young adulthood. To ensure a positive atmosphere for everyone, we have a straightforward principle regarding the quality of player: 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.