Iliman Ndiaye pays tribute to Sheffield United coaching pair after stunning Fulham winner

The Frenchman, making his first appearance for the Blades since his former U23 manager Heckingbottom took over permanently at Bramall Lane, scored a superb solo effort after running from his own half to seal all three points against the Championship leaders.

It was Heckingbottom who first blooded Ndiaye into the Blades first-team last season while they were still in the Premier League, while Lester – the former United striker now head of player development – has been working closely with the club’s strikers in recent weeks in training.

And Ndiaye said of Heckingbottom: “Big credit to him and Jack; they’ve helped me since they’ve joined Sheffield United.

“Jack has done a lot of finishing drills, where to go and how to use my body, so he’s helped me a lot.

'Outstanding': Blades player ratings after superb win away at leaders Fulham

“It feels great. I’m happy. This is what I’ve wanted to do for a long time and I think it’ll get even better.

“I want to score more goals and get more assists. The last time I scored was against Peterborough [a brace in a 6-2 win back in September] so to get back on the scoresheet was brilliant.

“We’ll continue to train hard and try and get the three points in the next game.”

Ndiaye revealed United had worked hard on studying Fulham’s strengths and weaknesses in training before travelling to the capital. “And we put it into practice,” the 21-year-old added.

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