At just about the same age that Kepa Arrizabalaga was taking on the burden of the heaviest price-tag ever attached to a goalkeeper, Edouard Mendy was, with a sigh of relief, removing his name from the register of France’s unemployed.
The goalkeeper Chelsea have identified as the solution to their pressing Kepa crisis could hardly have a more different backstory than the man he is earmarked to replace.
Mendy, who said farewell at the weekend to his teammates at Rennes, where his career had soared after some low points in his early 20s, is expected to confirm his move to Stamford Bridge imminently.
Chelsea have a goalkeeping problem, one that was all but openly acknowledged by the manager Frank Lampard after Arrizabalaga's errors in the two opening games of the Premier League season, the latest costing the second goal in the 2-0 defeat to Liverpool.
But the pursuit of Mendy is not a panicked reaction, a rushed recruitment near the end of a transfer window, to a sudden slump in form by Arrizabalaga, who cost over €80 million (Dh345m) from Athletic Bilbao in 2018.
The Senegal international goalkeeper has been on Chelsea’s radar for well over a year, recommended by Petr Cech, a totem between the posts for Chelsea for 11 seasons and now the club’s Technical and Performance Advisor. Cech, a former Rennes player, is an informed guide to Mendy’s talents and his suitability for English football, while Christophe Lollichon, the Chelsea goalkeeping coach and formerly in the same job at Rennes, has also sung the praises of Mendy.
Shortly after Mendy joined Rennes from Stade de Reims in the summer of 2019, Lollichon told L'Équipe of the six-foot-five Senegalese: "He is the best Rennes have had since Cech. He has all the assets of a modern keeper. He has the height, the agility and he's extremely proactive. He never hides from aerial challenges, will not panic when he receives the ball under pressure and he commands the space when his defensive line is set high up the pitch." Lollichon also predicted: "He's probably made for English football, one day."
Mendy himself was first told he was bound for England as long ago as 2013. He was 22, and his career had hit a setback. He had been playing for Cherbourg, in the third tier of French football, when the club were demoted for administrative irregularities. He was assured by his representatives that a move to England, probably to the Football League, was likely. It never materialised.
Mendy instead found himself queueing up at the job centre, unemployed. He kept up his football by training at Le Havre, close to his birthplace and to his parents’ home, where he had moved back.
Mendy had no competitive action for a year, a potentially damaging interruption in any career, and especially for a player in his early 20s, a key stage in professional development.
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Bale, Thiago and the top transfer moves in 2020/21
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Ibrahima Diallo - Brest to Southampton (£12 million). AFP -
Moise Kean - Everton to Paris Saint-Germain (loan). Getty Images -
Jose Callejon (left) - Napoli to Fiorentina (free). AP Photo -
Matteo Darmian - Parma to Inter Milan (loan). AFP -
Ryan Sessegnon - Tottenham to Hoffenheim (loan). AFP -
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting - Paris Saint-Germain to Bayern Munich (free). Reuters -
Douglas Costa - Juventus to Bayern Munich. Getty Images -
Davy Klaassen - Werder Bremen to Ajax (£10 million). Getty Images -
Wesley Hoedt - Southampton to Lazio (loan). Getty Images -
Ruben Vinagre - Wolves to Olympiakos (loan). AFP -
Justin Kluivert - Roma to RB Leipzig (loan). AFP -
Bouna Sarr - Marseille to Bayern Munich (£9 million). AFP -
Mattia De Sciglio - Juventus to Lyon (loan). Getty Images -
Tiemoue Bakayoko - Chelsea to Napoli (loan). Getty Images -
Matteo Guendouzi - Arsenal to Hertha Berlin (loan). Reuters -
Federico Chiesa - Fiorentina to Juventus (loan). Reuters -
Guido Carrillo - Southampton to Elche (loan). Reuters -
Gerard Deulofeu - Watford to Udinese (loan). Reuters -
Sofiane Boufal - Southampton to Angers (free). Getty Images -
Jack Wilshere - released. Reuters -
Chris Smalling - Manchester United to Roma (£13.5 million). Reuters -
Michael Cuisance - Bayern Munich to Marseille (loan). EPA -
The Premier League begins on Saturday. PA -
Diego Laxalt- AC Milan to Celtic (loan). EPA -
Edinson Cavani - Paris Saint-Germain to Manchester United (free). Reuters -
Theo Walcott - Everton to Southampton (loan). Reuters -
Raphinha - Rennes to Leeds United (£17 million). AFP -
Victor Mollejo - Atletico Madrid to Getafe (loan). EPA -
Lucas Torreira - Arsenal to Atletico Madrid (loan). Getty Images -
Alex Telles - Porto to Manchester United (£13.5 million). AFP -
Thomas Partey - Atletico Madrid to Arsenal (£45 million). AFP -
Rafinha - Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain (£2.7 million). EPA -
Facundo Pellistri - Penarol to Manchester United (£10 million). AFP -
Ruben Loftus-Cheek - Chelsea to Fulham (loan). PA -
Diogo Dalot - Manchester United to AC Milan (loan). Reuters -
Keita Balde - Monaco to Sampdoria (loan). Reuters -
Ruben Dias - Benfica to Manchester City (£62 million). Getty -
Nicolas Otamendi - Manchester City to Benfica (£13.6m). Reuters -
Ross Barkley - Chelsea to Aston Villa (loan). AFP -
Ademola Lookman (right) - RB Leipzig to Fulham (loan). AP Photo -
Lucas Paqueta - AC Milan to Lyon (£18.2 million). AFP -
Sergino Dest - Ajax to Barcelona (£19.1 million). EPA -
Wesley Fofana - Saint Etienne to Leicester City (£36.5 million). Reuters -
Rhian Brewster - Liverpool to Sheffield United (£23.5 million). Reuters -
Carlos Vinicius - Benfica to Tottenham Hotspur (loan). Reuters -
Andreas Pereira - Manchester United to Lazio (loan). Getty Images -
Jota - Aston Villa (free agent). EPA -
Sven Ulreich - Bayern Munich to Hamburg (£500,000). AFP -
Daniele Rugani - Juventus to Rennes (loan). Reuters -
Adrien Silva - Leicester City to Sampdoria (free). Getty Images -
Juan Foyth - Tottenham to Villarreal (loan). Reuters -
Loris Karius - Liverpool to Union Berlin (loan). Reuters -
Kevin-Prince Boateng - Fiorentina to Monza (undisclosed). AFP -
Roberto Pereyra - Watford to Udinese (£3 million). Reuters -
Edouard Mendy - Reims to Chelsea (£22 million). EPA -
Santiago Arias - Atletico Madrid to Bayer Leverkusen (loan). EPA -
Dale Stephens - Brighton to Burnley (£1 million). EPA -
Luis Suarez - Barcelona to Atletico Madrid (£5.5 million). AFP -
Diego Godin - Inter Milan to Cagliari (free). Reuters -
Cengiz Under - Roma to Leicester City (loan). EPA -
Ravel Morrison - Sheffield United to Ado Den Haag (free). PA -
Runar Alex Runarsson - Dijon to Arsenal (£1.8 million). Reuters -
Arturo Vidal - Barcelona to Inter Milan (£900,000). Reuters -
Alvaro Morata - Atletico Madrid to Juventus (loan). AFP -
Alexander Sorloth - Crystal Palace to RB Leipzig (£20 million). Reuters -
Diego Llorente - Real Valladolid to Leeds United (£23 million). EPA -
Nelson Semedo - Barcelona to Wolves (£27.6 million). AFP -
Gareth Bale - Real Madrid to Tottenham (loan). Reuters -
Thiago Alcantara - Bayern Munich to Liverpool (£27 million). Getty Images -
Bertrand Traore - Lyon to Aston Villa (£17 million). Reuters -
Davide Zappacosta - Chelsea to Genoa (loan). AFP -
Sergio Reguilon - Real Madrid to Tottenham (£27.5 million). Reuters -
Diogo Jota - Wolves to Liverpool (£41 million). Reuters -
Ki-Jana Hoever - Liverpool to Wolves (£9 million). Reuters -
Vedat Muriqi - Fenerbahce to Lazio (£16.2 million). Reuters -
Yoshinori Muto - Newcastle United to Eibar (loan). Getty Images -
Yann M'Vila - Saint Etienne to Olympiakos (free). AP Photo -
Emiliano Martinez - Arsenal to Aston Villa (£20 million). Reuters -
Gonzalo Higuain - Juventus to Inter Miami (free). AFP -
Michy Batshuayi - Chelsea to Crystal Palace (loan). AFP -
Nacer Chadli - Monaco to Istanbul Basaksehir (undisclosed). Reuters -
Kenny Tete - Lyon to Fulham (£3 million). AFP -
Andre Silva - AC Milan to Eintracht Frankfurt (£8.1 million). Reuters -
Florian Lejeune - Newcastle United to Alaves (loan). Getty Images -
Alessandro Florenzi - Roma to PSG (loan). AFP -
Ola Aina - Torino to Fulham (loan). Reuters -
Ciprian Tatarusanu - Lyon to AC Milan (£450,000). AFP -
Loic Mbe Soh - Paris Saint-Germain to Nottingham Forest (£5 million). AFP -
Ante Rebic - Eintracht Frankfurt to AC Milan (£8.1 million). AFP -
Callum Robinson - Sheffield United to West Bromwich Albion (swap). Reuters -
Oliver Burke - West Bromwich Albion to Sheffield United (swap). Reuters -
Alphonse Areola - PSG to Fulham (loan). Reuters -
Aleksandar Kolarov - Roma to Inter Milan (£900k). Reuters -
Kenedy - Chelsea to Granada (loan). Reuters -
Jamal Lewis - Norwich City to Newcastle United (£15 million). Reuters -
Yannick Carrasco - Dalian Pro to Atletico Madrid (£20 million). Reuters -
Rafael da Silva - Lyon to Istanbul Basaksehir (free). Reuters -
Angelino - Manchester City to RB Leipzig (loan extended). AFP -
James Rodriguez - Real Madrid to Everton (£22 million). Getty Images -
Ethan Ampadu - Chelsea to Sheffield United (loan). Reuters -
Ryan Fraser - Bournemouth to Newcastle (free). AP Photo -
Chris Brunt - West Brom to Bristol City (free). Reuters -
Callum Wilson - Bournemouth to Newcastle (£20 million). AFP -
Fabio Silva - Porto to Wolves (£35 million). AFP -
Borja Baston - Aston Villa to Leganes (free). AFP -
Bono - Girona to Sevilla (£3.6 million). Reuters -
Allan - Napoli to Everton (£22.5 million). AP -
Sergio Rico - Sevilla to Paris Saint-Germain (£5.4 million). Reuters -
Miralem Pjanic - Juventus to Barcelona (€60 million). Reuters -
Arthur - Barcelona to Juventus (€72 million). AFP -
Shane Duffy - Brighton to Celtic (loan). EPA -
Kevin Volland - Bayer Leverkusen to Monaco (£14 million). EPA -
Abdoulaye Doucoure - Watford to Everton (£20 million). Reuters -
Alvaro Odriozola - Bayern Munich to Barcelona (loan ended). EPA -
Philippe Coutinho - Bayern Munich to Barcelona (loan ended). Reuters -
Matty Cash - Nottingham Forest to Aston Villa (£16 million). Reuters -
Dani Ceballos - Real Madrid to Arsenal (loan extended). Reuters -
Ivan Rakitic - Barcelona to Sevilla ( £1.4 million). Reuters -
Gabriel - Lille top Arsenal (£27 million). Reuters -
Glenn Murray - Brighton & Hove Albion to Watford (free). Getty Images -
Donny van de Beek - Ajax to Manchester United (£35.7 million). EPA -
Mario Lemina - Southampton to Fulham (loan). Action Images -
Kai Havertz - Bayer Leverkusen to Chelsea (£72 million). AFP -
Yuto Nagatomo - Galatasaray to Marseille (loan). Victor Besa/The National -
Henrikh Mkhitaryan - Arsenal to Roma (free). EPA -
Weston McKennie - Schalke to Juventus (loan). EPA -
Loic Remy - Lille to Caykur Rizespor (free). AP Images -
Aaron Mooy - Brighton to Shanghai SIPG (£4 million) - Reuters -
Matt Doherty - Wolves to Tottenham (£14.7 million). Getty Images -
Rodrigo - Valencia to Leeds United (£26 million). Reuters -
Eberechi Eze - QPR to Crystal Palace (£19.5 million). PA Photo -
Thiago Silva PSG to Chelsea (free). Reuters -
Pepe Reina - AC Milan to Lazio (free). AP Photo -
Malang Sarr - Nice to Chelsea (free). AFP -
Ben Chilwell - Leicester City to Chelsea (£45m). Reuters -
Santi Cazorla - Villarreal to Al Sadd (free). EPA -
Alexis Sanchez - Manchester United to Inter Milan (free). EPA -
Pedro - Chelsea to Roma (released). AFP -
Kostas Tsimikas - Olympiakos to Liverpool (£11.8m). Reuters -
Nathan Ake - Bournemouth to Manchester City (£41 million). PA -
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg - Southampton top Tottenham (£15 million). Reuters -
Kyle Walker-Peters - Tottenham to Southampton (£12 million). AFP -
Francis Coquelin - Valencia to Villarreal (7.2 million). Reuters -
Blaise Matuidi - Juventus to Inter Miami FC (free). Getty Images -
Jan Vertonghen - Tottenham to Benfica (free). Reuters -
Willian - Chelsea to Arsenal (free). AFP -
Jeff Hendrick - Burnley to Newcastle United (free). AFP -
David Silva - Manchester City to Real Sociedad (free). Getty Images -
Oliver Skipp - Tottenham to Norwich City (loan). Reuters -
Claudio Bravo - Manchester City to Real Betis (free). Getty Images -
Jude Bellingham - Birmingham City to Borussia Dortmund (£25 million). Courtesy Borussia Dortmund -
Aaron Ramsdale - Bournemouth to Sheffield United (£18.5 million). AFP -
Reinier - Real Madrid to Borussia Dortmund (loan). Reuters -
Ricardo Rodriguez - AC Milan to Torino (£2.7 million). Reuters -
Scott Carson - Derby County to Manchester City (loan extended). EPA -
Antonio Adan - Atletico Madrid to Sporting (free). EPA -
Pablo Mari - Flamengo to Arsenal (£14 million). Reuters -
Joe Hart - Burnley to Tottenham (free). Reuters -
Timo Werner - RB Leipzig to Chelsea (£47.5 million). Reuters -
Dejan Lovren - Liverpool to Zenit (€12 million). AFP -
Adam Lallana - Liverpool to Brighton (free). Reuters
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By way of comparison, the precocious Arrizabalaga was established in the Athletic Bilbao side and had received his first call-up for Spain’s senior squad at the age of 22. Within 18 months he was making his Chelsea debut, having set that record-breaking transfer fee.
Mendy’s climb back up the ladder from his low point began at Olympique Marseille, who took him on, with a basic junior salary, as their fourth-choice keeper in 2014. He played just eight matches for the Marseille reserves that season - none for the first team - but benefited from expert coaching and regained his confidence.
"I really matured there and worked liked crazy," Mendy told L'Équipe. "My career path, with all the challenges, has made me the goalkeeper I am."
It was not until Mendy was 26 that he made his first appearance in France’s top division, having won promotion with Stade de Reims, who he joined from Marseille six summers ago.
A brilliant campaign in Ligue 1 earned his transfer to Rennes, for a modest €5m. By the time his debut season there was abandoned in March, because of the pandemic, he was last line of the joint-meanest defence in France’s top tier, and Rennes were on their way to celebrating a first qualification for the Champions League.
His international career was well under way, too, though that has been another slow-burner. Born in France to a father from Guinea-Bissau and a Senegalese mother, he turned out in an unofficial friendly for Guinea-Bissau before committing to Senegal. He went to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations as their first-choice but injury in the group stage kept him out of the rest of a tournament that finished with Senegal as runners-up.
Rennes will miss him, but wish him well. “He’s been a leader in the dressing room,” said Julien Stephan, the Rennes coach, “and a model professional.”
