Iliman Ndiaye wanted it that way. There was nothing to back up. The same response was given every time a request to consider an alternative was made.
Ndiaye was a teenager playing in non- league. He joined the academy a month after they confirmed their annual intake, after moving to England from Africa.
Even then, his ambition was notshakeable. If plan A, becoming a footballer, doesn't work out, I have to make sure the players know there's a plan B.
Where are you going to die if it doesn't happen for you?
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Iliman was the only one who said he was going to be a professional football player. He wouldn't back down on the issue. There was no suggestion that I would become a PE teacher. I was going to be a footballer. Don't forget to watch!"
So he did.
After spending three years in the academy of Boreham Wood, Ndiaye finally got his break with the club in 2019. He will face England in the last 16 of the World Cup, three years after he faced them in the group stage.
The story is extraordinary because of his will. Ndiaye told Sky Sports that giving up isn't in his dictionary. I have always believed that one day I will be the best player in the world.
All that had been said before. He says that he had a belief and a confidence that he hadn't seen before.
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There is more to it than meets the eye. Ndiaye is a special talent, despite his unconventional route to the top.
He has become a star of the promotion-chasing team and so do the fans.
The 22-year-old marked his World Cup debut as a substitute in the 3-1 victory over hosts Qatar with a trademark dribble and cut-back. Their place in the last 16 was assured when he started in the 2-1 win over Ecuador.
He won new admirers but they were not surprised by the displays. After one session, everyone looked at him and said he had something.
There was no one at 16. He was a little bit odd. He was fast-tracked into the elite squad because of his frightening ball skills. He was able to beat a man with his speed and change of direction.
His technical skill was underpinned by an absolute love of the game, nurtured by his father from a young age and such that he even volunteered to coach kids at summer camps during the off-season.
He was a great character. He'd do tricks all day long if you gave him the ball. The children loved that. It was things like that that helped him grow as a person.
Even though Ndiaye was new to English, it was still a challenge for his coaches to rein him in.
The language was easy to understand for him. He had a love and passion for football that I don't think I've seen in this generation, but at times he picked and chose what he understood from what I said to him on the pitch.
He just wanted to work on his skills. He would be on the pitch in the morning when we played in the evening. I would tell him to come off the field. He would say he didn't understand because he would go back out and play again.
Ndiaye arrived in England with a lot of experience having been in the academy of Marseille before moving to Senegal to play football. He was a street footballer who learned to play on concrete and sand pitches.
He had a tough upbringing and you could see his hunger on the pitch and off the pitch. There are a lot of players who have a lot of ability but can't do the other side of the game.
Iliman is the hardest working player. The first one to leave. He would run faster than everyone else. There was a desire to win and a hunger to succeed.
Iliman would cop the hump and when we did, you would know about it. He wouldn't be happy and it would end up being an issue because he wanted to win that much. He was hungry.
The top-level players are like monsters in their mentality and he was like that from a young age
Ndiaye embraced the physical part of the game. "He loved it," says Mawer with a smile. If you kicked Iliman, he would get back up and go again.
For all his obvious talent, he wasn't picked up by a bigger club sooner because of his stature.
He didn't seem to come across as that driving force in a footballer. He might have taken a bit of time to learn how to coach.
I saw him and he was filled out. He's in good shape. He appears to be a man. He was a year below his age in terms of physical appearance. Technical ability is miles above. He might not have been able to go into our U23s because of that physical condition.
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He was a different person by the time he went on trial for the club in 2019.
There was no doubt when he was there.
During his six week trial with the Yorkshire club, Ndiaye was outstanding. About 40 calls came in from other interested parties.
After a short time with Rising Ballers, Ndiaye decided to move north, but he had to be patient as Chris Wilder could not find a place for him.
He had a brief loan spell with Hyde United before he was replaced by Slavisa Jokanovic. Ndiaye was given his first extended run of games at senior level by the Serb, but it was under the current boss that he has flourished.
He scored four of them in the last five league games of the season after he was moved up front.
He is now up to nine. He is the joint-top scorer in the division and he has also made the most successful dribbles, his performances at club level eventually earning him his World Cup chance.
His coaches and team-mates also love him. Chris Basham thinks he's going to be an elite player. The boys are excited about how good he is. It's a pleasure to have him with us.
He felt the same way about the years he spent at the wood.
He said he was proud of him because he knows where he came from.
The work he has done to get to where he is will not be seen by the people. He will be rewarded for his hard work if he plays on Sunday.
The boy with no back-up plan was able to fulfill his ambition to play football. This is not the end. Iliman Ndiaye may soon have more admirers to add to.
The kick-off is 7pm on Sky Sports.
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