The father of Everton star Iliman Ndiaye has been speaking on his son's future following a summer of transfer speculation
Iliman Ndiaye’s father insists his son is staying put at Everton despite ongoing speculation about his future.
Various reports this week have claimed that Ndiaye has agreed personal terms with Al Hilal but as revealed by the ECHO on Wednesday, the Blues insist the winger is not for sale, the club's stance has not changed since manager David Moyes publicly made his position clear on the player in April and while there is interest from the Saudi Arabian club, there has been no formal contact as yet.
The Senegal international has rejected several new contract offers from Everton since the start of the year and spoke of his desire to play Champions League football in an interview with SPORTbible on the eve of the World Cup finals.
However, with the Lions of Teranga having been eliminated by Belgium at the round of 32 stage on July 1, he is expected back shortly as the Blues now head for the German training camp with fixtures at Hamburg and Stuttgart over the next two Saturdays.
Mouhamadou Abdoulaye Ndiaye states that his son – who has three years remaining on his current deal – won’t be leaving Everton though and Sport Witness quote him as telling Wiw Sport in Senegal: “Many people called me to tell me that Iliman was going to leave. But rest assured, he’s not going anywhere.
“He called me this morning. I even teased him with a few words in Arabic, and we had a good laugh. He let me know he had no intention of going to Saudi Arabia.
“He knows he can earn a lot of money there, but he also thinks his level could drop. He’s not the type to prioritise money over his career.”
These were sentiments echoed by this correspondent in an opinion piece published earlier today, warning that given the way that the Blues’ passionate supporters have taken Ndiaye to heart, with the player scoring their final goal at Goodison Park and first at Hill Dickinson Stadium, he should forget the money as he’d have more to lose to gain if he picked a Saudi Arabia transfer exit from Everton at this stage of his career.