Everton fans were delighted earlier this week when Iliman Ndiaye made his return to match action.
Ndiaye came off the bench against Liverpool at Anfield, after suffering a knee injury in the reverse fixture back in February.
Ndiaye left the pitch in tears that night, which left Everton supporters extremely concerned.
But thankfully the injury Ndiaye sustained for Everton didn’t turn out to be too serious and on Wednesday the attacker made his return. A first start then followed for the player on Saturday against Arsenal.
And Ndiaye marked that first start back with a goal, as he struck confidently from the penalty spot.
Ahead of kick-off between Everton and Arsenal, Ndiaye’s return came into focus for the TNT Sports punditry team – and Phil Jagielka made an intriguing claim about the star.
Phil Jagielka shares what’s different about Iliman Ndiaye since he signed for Everton
Everton signed Ndiaye last summer from French club Marseille.
Previously Ndiaye had already had a spell in English football, having been Sheffield United for a few years.
He joined the Blades in the summer of 2019, and spent the second half of that season on loan at Hyde United.
But at Bramall Lane, he became teammates with former Everton skipper Phil Jagielka, who’d pitched up a month earlier after a 12-year stint at Goodison Park.
So he has a bit of an idea as to what Ndiaye is like, and on Saturday Jagielka made an interesting claim about his ex-teammate.
He said on TNT Sports: “Iliman’s had a fantastic season this year. He played a lot as a number 10 or as a striker in his earlier days. But David Moyes has moved him out a little bit more to the let, which I think suits him a little bit more.
“He gets on the ball, he’s the creative spark, we can even see him working hard, which I know wasn’t always the case, I played alongside him at Sheffield United!
“He’s come here and he’s given these fans something to cheer about and got them off their feet and scored some important goals.”
Ndiaye work-rate vs Arsenal ‘superb’
It’s interesting to hear Jagielka speak about the transformation for Ndiaye regarding his work-rate.
To be a top Premier League attacker, it is paramount for players these days to ensure they carry out their defensive duties. Pressing is a huge part of the game, and many managers will not tolerate players who don’t busy a gut – not least David Moyes.
Ndiaye really does work hard in an Everton shirt, and it was the same story against Arsenal, with journalist Patrick Boyland actually describing his work out of possession at Goodison as ‘superb’.
Ndiaye is a real maverick, and a creative spark. Sometimes these types of players don’t have the defensive attributes to boot.
But thankfully he does, and it’s part of the reason he is so popular with Evertonians.
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