Abu Bakar Yasin<\/span>BBC Newsbeat<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n “The way I play football gets people off their seats,” says Iliman Ndiaye.<\/p>\n Everton fans were certainly on their feet when the midfielder netted an early goal of the season contender against Sunderland earlier this month.<\/p>\n After getting the ball on the right wing, he flashed past his opponents’ defence in an impressive display of speed and skill before putting it away with his weaker foot. <\/p>\n The Senegalese winger’s talent is taken for granted now, but he had to work hard to prove himself before landing a spot in a Premier League starting line-up. <\/p>\n He tells BBC Newsbeat that Rising Ballers, a media brand that uses grassroots initiatives to show off unsigned talent, was instrumental in helping him to showcase his skills.<\/p>\n “The things I was doing there, I wasn’t doing at other clubs. It helped me stay fit and enjoy football more, especially when you don’t have a club,” he says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The French-born footballer did not have an easy run on his way to the top, with numerous clubs rejecting him over the years, including Chelsea and Tottenham.<\/p>\n He got close while with the Southampton development team, which led to a six-week trial at the club, but he didn’t make the cut.<\/p>\n The disappointing run continued until Boreham Wood, who are in the fifth tier of English Football, signed him in 2017.<\/p>\n He later went on trial at Sheffield United where he was signed for the following season when he turned 19, but he needed to stay fit before starting.<\/p>\n That’s when Rising Ballers came in.<\/p>\n “I was playing five-a-side to keep fit and one of the guys was like: ‘You’ve got to play for them’,” he recalls. <\/p>\n “At first, they were like: ‘No’ – because they didn’t know who I was.<\/p>\n “Then they said I could come in for a game and that’s where they found out about my skill.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Only 180 of the 1.5 million boys playing organised youth football in England will ever play in the Premier League.<\/p>\n Despite the odds being stacked against him, Ndiaye was determined to succeed, especially after one team told his father that he wouldn’t make it as a professional.<\/p>\n “I have trained my whole time to be a football player and just believe in my ability,” he says.<\/p>\n “You know that everything that you do in training, it’s all going to pay off for one day.<\/p>\n “Don’t focus on the rejection and one day your luck is going to come through.”<\/p>\n Rising Ballers says more than 15 players it has showcased have gone on to sign for professional clubs.<\/p>\n They include Jerome Richards, who plays for Derby County, and Mohamed Keita, who is at Wycombe Wanderers.<\/p>\n The brand taps into the power of social media by highlighting players to its millions of followers across its Instagram, YouTube and TikTok channels. <\/p>\n It also generates more attention by working with brands on campaigns and hosting showcase events.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Two young footballers – 18-year-old Kevar March-Mckenzie and 20-year-old George Edwards – are trying to follow in Ndiaye’s footsteps.<\/p>\n At 16, Kevar was rejected after a three-week trial at Coventry, while George was part of many academies.<\/p>\n Now, both have taken part in Rising Baller showcase games, where a group of grassroots players in London play in front of scouts.<\/p>\n Both see Ndiaye as an inspiration to those who still haven’t been signed.<\/p>\n Kevar says everyone around him sees Ndiaye as a “role model” as “he was the one who made it”.<\/p>\n George grew up playing in junior squads for Arsenal, Tottenham and Queens Park Rangers before he stopped growing at around age 13 to 14.<\/p>\n “Everywhere I went I was told I was too small. I want to keep carrying on and prove them all wrong,” he says. <\/p>\n “People would look at me and Kevar and probably think we’ve got no chance, but Iliman inspires us. He signed a professional contract at 19. Look at him now.” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Academies remain the most likely way into a professional football career.<\/p>\n According to a report by the Premier League’s Elite Performance Plan, over 11% of its top-level academy graduates go on to play at least 20 professional league games.<\/p>\n And the English Football League – which represents clubs in the Championship, League One and League Two – say more homegrown academy players are now playing in their teams.<\/p>\n Ndiaye believes his journey can be a source of inspiration for those who are not part of an academy.<\/p>\n “It’s not easy being in an academy, but it’s easier than those who are not in it, as they don’t have that pathway,” he says.<\/p>\n “So, you’ve just got to stay focused, train how they train, always stay sharp and take your chance when it comes.”<\/p>\n He feels his time at Rising Ballers helped him to become a professional after suffering so much rejection.<\/p>\n “When you have that atmosphere, it keeps you going.”<\/p>\n He says he will let others decide if he is the best “baller” in the Premier League, but he certainly puts himself up there.<\/p>\n “If I didn’t score after my dribble against Sunderland, people would say they like the skill, but people would say I didn’t finish after it.<\/p>\n “I don’t just try and dribble, I try and get goals and assists.<\/p>\n “Premier League players are not going to let you get past them, you’ve got to work for it.”<\/p>\n In terms of what makes a baller, Ndiaye says it’s simple. <\/p>\n “For me, it’s skills,” he says. “It doesn’t have to be a rainbow flick.<\/p>\n “The way you dribble past three, four players in the Prem, that’s skills to me.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"PA](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/d559\/live\/80ce4480-bf17-11f0-9b5b-bdadc82a2180.jpg.webp\")
PA Media<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n![](\"https:\/\/static.files.bbci.co.uk\/bbcdotcom\/web\/20251110-152207-94080fba49-web-2.33.2-3\/grey-placeholder.png\")
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PA Media<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n‘He was the one who made it’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Handout<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"Handout](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/9b77\/live\/60c68640-bf1f-11f0-ae89-e993d0cb9b26.jpg.webp\")
Handout<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/1b8f\/live\/ca842230-6868-11f0-8dbd-f3d32ebd3327.png.webp\")
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