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What did Grealish say on Ndiaye?
Saka, still only 24, has delivered consistently for both club and country and remains central to Arsenal’s title push. Yet Grealish drew a clear distinction between effectiveness and artistry, insisting that technical flair should be judged separately from output. In his view, Ndiaye represents the league’s most skilful operator right now, capable of manipulating the ball in the tightest of spaces.
He said: "Ndiaye is the most skilful player in the Premier League. In terms of pure skill, yeah. I'm not sitting here saying, oh yeah, he could be the best, but skilful. Saka, for example, is so good, one of the best wingers in the world. But he's not skilful."
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall agreed with the assessment and opined that Ndiaye is more skilled than Chelsea star Cole Palmer as well. He said: "Yeah, but see, Cole… Cole's like… In terms of pure skill, like, you ain't gonna see Cole doing skills like anywhere, so I'm feeling that. Cole's just more silky and moving his body."
Comparing with Doku, Grealish added: "Like, Doku, for example, you wouldn't put him in, like, I don't know, a small five-a-side pitch. But Ndiaye wouldn't even need that space at all. Yeah, yeah, yeah. No matter where he's in. He's just in and out, whereas Doku, like, you know, might need a bit of space for his, like, pace and stuff. Saka as well."
Transfer interest and growing speculation around Ndiaye
Ndiaye’s form will inevitably attract attention, particularly with the World Cup on the horizon. Clubs across Europe are monitoring players of his profile, and he has been valued as high as £52.7m ($70.5m). Everton, however, are keen to project calm, insisting their focus remains on results rather than rumours. That calm was briefly disrupted after Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Everton earlier in December, when Blues captain Reece James was spotted in an animated conversation with Ndiaye with his hands in front of his mouth to prevent the cameras from picking up his lip movements. Fans started speculating whether James was acting as an agent trying to convince Ndiaye to join Chelsea in January. It must be noted that Ndiaye had admitted to admiring Chelsea while he was developing his skills.
Speaking to BBC Sport in August 2024, he said: "Personally, for me, it is the best league in the world. Everyone dreams of being in the Premier League. It is not easy to get to it. I know a lot of players whose aim was to play there, but it hasn't happened yet. I watch football, I live football, I eat football – when I was young, I used to be a fan of Chelsea. I watched Eden Hazard and Didier Drogba, and it was amazing watching them play."