Ndiaye's journey from non-league football to £65m Man City move

Iliman Ndiaye's journey to Manchester City has been something of a scenic route after he completed a move to Etihad Stadium from Everton in a deal worth up to £65m.

The deadline day move for the Senegal winger, 26, is worth £60m plus a further £5m in add-ons - a little over six years since he made his professional debut playing in the seventh tier of English football.

"I've worked my whole life for an opportunity like this," said Ndiaye, who has signed a five-year contract with the club.

"City are one of the best clubs in the world and I've seen them win everything as I've grown up. To be able to write my own chapter in a story that special is the chance of a lifetime and I'm determined to grab it with both hands."

Ndiaye had held talks with Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal earlier in the summer while Tottenham had agreed terms with Everton on Friday night for Ndiaye, when it looked as though Richarlison would move the other way in a separate transfer.

However, sources indicated Richarlison failed to agree personal terms with his former club and as a result, Spurs were unable to proceed with the Ndiaye transfer.

The move comes on the same day City agreed to pay a joint-British transfer record fee of £125m for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

The Argentian international is set to become City's eighth summer arrival with Enzo Maresca's side having also signed Elliot Anderson, Geronimo Rulli, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Allan Elias, Jeremy Monga and Pierce Charles.

As a 19-year-old living in London, Ndiaye was in the youth ranks of Boreham Wood and playing Sunday league football when he was invited for a one-week trial with Sheffield United.

Two trial games were enough for the then-Premier League club to sign the talented teenager, although it would be another 18 months until he made an appearance for the Blades.

Instead, he spent the second half of the 2019-20 campaign on loan at Hyde United in the Northern Premier Division, six levels below the top division.

He made six appearances in his very first taste of professional football, often risking missing the last train back to Sheffield to stay out on the training pitch.

"It's not always been easy in my career," said Ndiaye.

"But I always had the belief that I could play for a team challenging for the biggest prizes and now I'm here."

After returning to Bramall Lane, Ndiaye made his Premier League debut in March 2021 against Leicester City but it would be another three-and-a-half years until he became established at the highest level following the Blades' relegation.

Two seasons in the Championship culminated in Ndiaye spearheading their return to the top flight in 2023 with 14 goals in 43 starts but he was then sold to Marseille that summer.

Ndiaye struggled during a season in France before joining Everton for an initial £16m fee in July 2024.

A firm fan favourite on Merseyside, "Skiliman" scored 15 goals and provided four assists in 67 Premier League games for the Toffees before his City move.

In a summer of highly-inflated transfer fees, value has become increasingly hard to determine.

On one hand, the Senegal international is a player of superlative skill, evasive, quick and wonderfully entertaining with the ball at his feet.

Ndiaye was responsible for 73 of Everton's 250 completed dribbles last season, the highest share of any Premier League player.

Everton fans may also point to recent moves in the Premier League involving City, such as the sale of Savio to Tottenham for an initial £75m, as further evidence that the club should have demanded more for Ndiaye.

On the other hand, Everton are effectively quadrupling the initial £16m they paid Marseille to sign Ndiaye two years ago for a player whose underlying numbers, at this stage at least, are not truly elite.

In the Premier League last season, Ndiaye only ranked joint third at Everton alone for goal contributions (nine), with Beto (10) and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (12) providing more.

It is reasonable to assume that those numbers for Ndiaye will improve in a more attacking team at City but his general creativity is also middling as things stand.

He created 36 chances in total in the Premier League last season, ranking him only fourth at Everton. Toffees midfielder James Garner created 26 more. Jack Grealish, whose season ended in January because of injury, created eight more.

Grealish has effectively replaced Ndiaye at Everton following his loan move from Enzo Maresca's side.

Casting the net a little wider, 45 Premier League players have recorded more goal contributions than Ndiaye's 19 since he made his Everton debut two years ago.

As a 26-year-old set to be surrounded by better players, it would be no surprise should his numbers flourish at the Etihad.

But even in today's money, £65m for Ndiaye's current output may not be as questionable a deal as it sounds.