France national team boss Didier Deschamps gave his take, in a wide-ranging interview to L’Équipe, on the Benjamin Mendy (29) situation. The former Manchester City left-back has been cleared of all charges of sexual crimes last month by the Chester Crown Court. Legal proceedings had resulted in his suspension from the Premier League side since August 2021 and put his football career on hold for nearly two years. Only days after his acquittal, the 2017 Ligue 1 champion with AS Monaco sealed a shock return to the French top flight in signing a two-year deal with Lorient.
Deschamps, who had called up Mendy for the 2018 World Cup, mentioned that all forms of violence are intolerable and unacceptable. “They must be fought, judged and condemned, if needed. As for Benjamin, I will stick to the facts.” The 54-year-old manager explained that complaints were filed and that Mendy was held in pre-trial detension. “English authorities have done their investigation. He was found to be not guilty and was then cleared.“
Deschamps regrets that the “public court” had “already condemned” Mendy. The 1998 World Cup winner went on to say that court decisions have to be respected and not commented on. “From the moment justice sysyems found him not guilty, I can’t see why I should consider him non-selectable“, added Deschamps. “Although his return is not on the agenda.“
Mendy has not featured for Les Bleus since November 2019 and an European qualifiers tie away at Albania. With Deschamps’ Les Bleus now relying on Théo and Lucas Hernandez, Lucas Digne, Ferland Mendy Adrien Truffert or even Eduardo Camavinga to play as a left-back, we may have seen the last of Mendy at the international level.
GFFN | Bastien Cheval
