Sheffield United face a huge Iliman Ndiaye/ Marseille decision as early as this weekend
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Using a steady stream of ‘private’ briefings and leaks in an effort to back Paul Heckingbottom’s employers into a corner, the Ligue 1 outfit are said to be quietly confident of striking a deal for the Senegal international later this summer.
After making no secret of his desire to retain Ndiaye’s services, identifying him as an integral part of the squad he hopes can establish itself in the Premier League next term, Heckingbottom will be minded to include the 23-year-old in his plans for the visit to Derbyshire; United’s first pre-season friendly of their warm-up programme.
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Hide AdBut if officials in Provence decide to take the next step in their pursuit of a player who was directly involved in nearly a third of his team’s goals last term - by making an official approach to Bramall Lane - Heckingbottom could be urged to omit Ndiaye from his plans for the match. In January, when Newcastle launched what proved an unsuccessful bid to capture Sander Berge on loan, Heckingbottom was inclined to select him for an FA Cup tie at Wrexham before admitting he had been instructed to withdraw the Norwegian from the game.
The Star first revealed last week that Marseille were minded to renew their efforts to buy Ndiaye this summer after considering a swoop following United’s promotion from the Championship. That was confirmed when senior but anonymous figures at the Stade Velodrome then began outlining their intentions to a number of regional and national media outlets in France. The tactic forms part of their ploy to persuade United to part company with the forward before his contract expires in 11 months’ time.
Although United have offered Ndiaye a new deal, which contains a significant wage increase, Marseille are confident he wants to rejoin them after spending time in their academy as a youngster.
Heckingbottom recently told United’s board of directors earlier this year that it would be impossible to source like-for-like replacements for both Ndiaye and Berge if either left South Yorkshire ahead of the new campaign.