Senegal manager Aliou Cisse says he will continue to watch Sheffield United's Iliman Ndiaye, after the attacker made his international debut over the weekend.

Ndiaye enjoyed a breakthrough season for Sheffield United in 2021/22, scoring seven goals and providing two assists in 32 Championship games for the Blades.

Despite being born in France, the 22-year-old is eligible to play for Senegal thanks to his parentage, which saw him handed his first call-up for Senegal for this month's round of internationals.

That then led to Ndiaye being handed his first international cap at any level, when he came off the bench in the 67th minute of Senegal's 3-1 win over Benin in qualifying for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Now it seems as though Ndiaye did himself no harm with his efforts when he got on the pitch for his national team for the first time.

Giving his verdict on the attacker's performance in that win, Senegal coach Cisse told WiWi Sport: "Satisfied. I am satisfied. Iliman was very happy to be here. He had very, very big eyes since the beginning of the week.

"He's a boy who has quality, capable of playing everywhere. He has a good mentality, so yes we will continue to follow him.”

The Verdict

This is certainly an exciting prospect from Ndiaye's perspective.

After an excellent season with Sheffield United, this opportunity on the international stage feels like just reward for the attacker's progress over the past 12 months or so.

Indeed, the fact he has been able to perform so impressively so quickly in high pressure situations for both club and country, certainly bodes well for the 22-year-old going forward in his career.

You also feel as though this international breakthrough has come at the perfect time for Ndiaye, with the World Cup just a few months away.