The midfielder believes Iliman Ndiaye has the talent to follow in the footsteps of some of football's greatest players
Idrissa Gueye has tipped Iliman Ndiaye for the top
Idrissa Gueye has tipped Iliman Ndiaye for the top(Image: Getty Images)
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Idrissa Gueye believes Iliman Ndiaye has the talent to become one of the greatest players in the world.
The 25-year-old has lit up the Premier League this season, scoring four goals and dazzling defenders with his tricks on the right of David Moyes’ attack.
Several highlight reels of his matchday antics have gone viral since the start of the campaign as the wider football community starts to acknowledge his talent.
For Gueye, his Everton and Senegal teammate, that ability could take Ndiaye to the very top - and even to the Ballon d’Or prize once monopolised by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. George Weah is the only player from Africa to have won the prestigious award.
Gueye said: "I challenge [Ndiaye] every game, every time we play. I'm always speaking to him. He's a good boy, he listens a lot and, yeah, I'm like his... grandbrother. I always knew he would be successful here at Everton and, honestly, I don't think he's shown his best yet.
"I train with him every day so I see his quality every day and I can see what he is capable of. He just needs to believe in himself, keep working hard and have high expectations of himself. I told him when he first arrived here that he can be the next African Ballon d'Or winner, because he has the quality, he has the technique, he has the skills and everything. He has a combination I've never seen before.”
Ndiaye enjoyed a positive first season on Merseyside after moving across from Marseille in the summer of 2024. His attacking prowess has come to the fore since the arrival of Moyes in January, the Blues boss giving him more freedom to run at full-backs.
That materialised most effectively in his superb solo goal against Tottenham Hotspur to help Moyes to the first win of his second stint as Everton manager.
And he has not looked back even after being moved out of position to the right flank this season. His stunning individual effort at Sunderland is the highpoint of a season in which his trickery has created a host of glorious chances for teammates, including against Manchester City.
Gueye, in conversation with Everton club media, said: "He's a humble guy. A very, very good guy. He's not shy – he likes to play and joke with everyone. Nobody ever has a problem with him because he is humble and always keeps working hard. You see in those videos even from when he was very young how hard he works and it's because he always wants to be better."
Moyes has spoken in similarly glowing terms about Ndiaye and his commitment on and off the pitch. Speaking to the ECHO recently, Moyes admitted he had been surprised by just how good he is. He said: “I wondered when I came in how he was going to be, would he add goals to what we had because maybe if your nines aren't getting them, you're saying where else are we getting the goals? Are we getting them from our centre-half scoring from set pieces, our wingers coming in?
“So, I have to say, when I first came I thought: ‘Is Ili going to get us enough goals?’ But he has and he's got us important goals and important assists but I actually think he's got better.”
While his performances are attracting interest, Moyes is calm about Ndiaye’s Everton future. Working out how to cope with the loss of him and Gueye when Senegal head to Morocco for the Africa Cup of Nations across December and January is an ongoing concern, however.
Moyes said: “I generally think that he's improved greatly. He is on a long contract here so we've got no worries about that. So we like him, we do like him and he's a great boy to work with, he's low maintenance, he plays all of the game and doesn’t complain about anything.
“He goes away with Senegal, comes back and plays again, so he's a really good boy from that point of view so we like him a lot.”