Sheffield United starlet eyeing Iliman Ndiaye path as boss’s challenge revealed

Boyhood Blade Louie Marsh admits Iliman Ndiaye has set the standards for all Sheffield United’s young starlets to try and follow, after detailing his ambition of making his senior debut this season.

Marsh caught the eye again for United’s U21s this season with the winner against Wednesday at Bramall Lane on Monday afternoon, his 16^th of a campaign that has also seen him feature in the matchday squad for Paul Heckingbottom’s senior squad.

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Marsh could again be named in the matchday 20 for next month’s FA Cup tie against top-flight giants Tottenham Hotspur at Bramall Lane, with strikers Rhian Brewster and Billy Sharp currently injured and Will Osula cup-tied.

The 19-year-old is one of many at Bramall Lane to have been inspired by Ndiaye’s rapid rise from the Blades’ U23 squad, to a first-team regular and an international footballer with Senegal in little over a calendar year.

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“I try to look at Iliman a lot when I’m playing,” Marsh admitted. “For all us boys in there, he’s one we look up to really.

“He’s been in our position and we’re trying to get to where he is really. Try and push on. But he’s a role model for all of us, for sure.

“He’s not the only one. Everyone is nice. Sharpy and John Egan have been brilliant, skipper and vice skipper. But everyone has been a huge help so far.

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“It’s a great group. Everyone has made me feel welcome and it’s such a tight-knit group. I’ve only just got in and around the first team at the moment but it’s been brilliant so far.

“I train with the first team now and again and the more I do that, the better player I become. I like to get on the ball and play forward, and show everyone what I’ve got. And they encourage that, if I’m being too shy they tell me and that boosts my confidence.”

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Born in Sheffield, Marsh joined his boyhood club at eight years old and, after overcoming a bad injury that required surgery last season, set himself the target of notching 20 goals this campaign to make up for lost time.

“The target is to get some minutes in the first-team,” Marsh admitted. “If not, I’ve got to keep performing for the U21s. I’m four off my target now but I’m not going to stop there.

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“I’ve got to push myself for the first team. That’s what every kid wants to do, so I’ve got to keep going. That’s what Hecky has said to me.

“It’s tough, obviously. There are 20-odd top players in the first-team and I’m a young kid just trying to push up there. So I can’t be big-headed or anything like that. I’ve got to stay humble.

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“The first-team is a massive step up. In and out of possession, and tactically and everything else. When I get up there and get a chance to train with the first-team boys, I’ve just got to keep showing everyone what I’m good at.”