Ndiaye hints at Marseille return weeks after joining Man City in £65m deal

Iliman Ndiaye has hinted he would welcome a return to Marseille in the future, despite having joined Manchester City in a £65m deal from Everton only weeks ago.

The 26-year-old Senegal international responded to reports of Marseille supporters chanting for his return by saying: “The shouts from Marseille supporters asking me to come back? It is nice to hear. I don’t think that the story is finished, but we will see. I’m just saying, I never know where it’ll lead me, but we’ll see anyway.”

Ndiaye added: “I only have positive memories of my time at OM, and it was a source of pride for me. I don’t miss a single match. It’s my club, and it always will be.”

The French-born attacking midfielder spent a single season at the Stade Vélodrome after joining from Sheffield United for £20m in 2023, scoring four goals and registering five assists in 46 appearances before leaving for Everton 12 months later. He is reported to have supported Marseille since childhood.

At City, Ndiaye has made four appearances since his summer arrival and is yet to register a goal or assist, though he drew praise for his performance as a substitute in the Manchester derby last month.

His comments arrive at a turbulent moment for the club. The Premier League announced this week that City have been found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of its financial regulations across the period from 2009/10 to 2017/18, including artificially inflating revenue by more than £900m through what the commission described as “sham” sponsorship agreements.

City have denied any wrongdoing and lodged a formal appeal on Thursday evening. In a statement released on Friday, the club said they are “innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League” and possess “a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” to support their case, adding that the commission’s opinion “contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe.”