Sheffield United have the players to hurt Man City, Pep Guardiola is warned
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The world’s most expensively assembled squad and reigning Premier League champions, City are strong favourites to win tomorrow’s FA Cup semi-final between the two clubs at Wembley Stadium.
Despite acknowledging the depth of talent at the opposition’s disposal, United midfielder Oliver Norwood is convinced there are members of Paul Heckingbottom’s squad Guardiola will be wary of too.
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Hide AdIdentifying Senegal international Iliman Ndiaye as one of those, Norwood told The Star: “There are players here who can cause them problems, definitely. We’ve got some really good footballers and we haven’t got to where we are now just by booting the ball forward, lumping it upfield.”
Ndiaye, aged 23, has enjoyed a meteoric rise this season. Having forced his way into the Senegal squad and represented the Africans at last year’s World Cup, the attacker is now regarded as one of the best footballers in England’s second tier. Maybe, the best according to Norwood who has criticised the English Football League’s decision not to nominate his team mate for an award during their end of season prize giving ceremony this weekend. As well as scoring the winning goal against Tottenham Hotspur in the fifth round, Ndiaye has also been a driving force behind United’s climb to second in the Championship table, with Heckingbottom’s team needing only one more victory to make sure of promotion.
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“Iliman has got the world at his feet,” Norwood said. “Genuinely, he’s that good. I don’t want to put any undue pressure on him and I’m not. But with the ability he’s got and more importantly the attitude, I don’t see any reason why he can’t go all the way.”
Citing Bosnia and Herzegovina centre-half Anel Amedhodzic as another of United’s most influential performers, Norwood added: “I definitely think this team is ready for the Premier League. Just ask any Championship defenders if they’ve enjoyed facing Iliman this season. He scored a great goal against world class defenders (against Spurs) and so we know what he can do. Anel has done really well also.”