Manchester City Secures Iliman Ndiaye in Deadline-Day Deal
Manchester City did not just win the race for Iliman Ndiaye. They blew past Tottenham on the final bend and never looked back.
On the last day of the transfer window, City struck a £65m agreement with Everton for the Senegal international, according to The Athletic. The deal is built around a £60m upfront fee, with a further £5m in potential add-ons, and delivers Pep Guardiola another high-powered option in attack.
Tottenham had been in position. They had turned to Ndiaye after failing to prise Cody Gakpo away from Liverpool, a chase that had already pitted them against City. When Gakpo stayed put, Spurs pushed for Ndiaye. City simply moved quicker, and with more force.
For the 26-year-old, the choice barely felt like a contest.
“It’s easy to make the decision about whether you want to be at Manchester City or not,” Ndiaye said after sealing the move. “You can see the recent history; you want to be part of that project.”
Those talks with City’s hierarchy sealed it. They laid out the vision, the role, the scale of what could be done with him in the side.
“They talked to me about where we could go, what we could achieve with me in the team, and I was interested from the beginning,” he explained. “There was nothing else that I wanted other than joining Manchester City.”
The forward spoke like a man who has been chasing this level for years and has finally reached the door he wanted.
“Obviously, you want to be part of this new project. I’ve seen recently what they’ve been doing, and I feel like I will fit right in it,” he said. “I’m super excited to start. It’s an unbelievable moment. I’ve worked so hard to get to this point and I’m super excited and really grateful for this opportunity.”
City’s Statement Window
Ndiaye’s arrival was not an isolated strike. It completed a thunderous finish to the window at the Etihad.
Alongside the deal for the Everton forward, City also wrapped up the £125m signing of Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez. The fee matches the British transfer record and reunites the Argentine with Enzo Maresca, adding another layer of intrigue to a squad already stacked with technical quality and big-game experience.
One late push. Two major signings. A clear message about where City intend to stay in the domestic and European hierarchy.
Spurs Scramble After Double Miss
While City celebrated, Tottenham were left picking through the wreckage of a brutal few days in the market.
They had chased Gakpo. They pivoted to Ndiaye. They landed neither.
With the clock ticking and attacking reinforcements still needed, Spurs turned back towards Stamford Bridge and found a lifeline. A loan deal for Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk was quickly thrashed out before the deadline, reuniting the former Shakhtar Donetsk star with Roberto De Zerbi, under whom he produced his most electric football.
City walk away with Ndiaye and Fernandez, their squad fortified again. Tottenham walk away with Mudryk and a lingering question: in a season of fine margins, how costly will those near-misses at the top of the market prove to be?
