Where’s Mendy : The Disappearance of Benjamin Mendy

Now in his second year as a Manchester City player, Benjamin Mendy has so far managed only 21 appearances for the Club. He made 9 appearances last season and so far has accrued 12 this year.

When he burst into Manchester City he was the missing link in the tactical plan, having the ability to undertake a variety of roles he gave options to Pep Guardiola. He was a marauding power house of a wing back but sometimes he came inside too, like an old fashioned inside forward. His crossing was direct and quick and consequently I thought he would create a million goals for us.

But injury has cruelly robbed us as fans of witnessing those displays on the pitch. But most of all it has robbed Mendy of his chance to truly dominate. For anyone who has read the Paul Lake book we can appreciate in part the impact of lengthy injury lay offs and how crushing they can be to a player who may find application alone  is not a passport to recovery.

More from Man City Editorials

• Phil Foden Scores Opener for England Against Scotland
• The FA Cup 1904; Manchester City’s First Trophy Ever
• Scandal Erupts: Raival’s Star Winger Antony Faces Accusations of Assault
• Man City Reigns Supreme in Ballon d’Or Nominations, Argentina Shines on National Stage
• Louis van Gaal Drops Bombshell: Accuses Argentina of World Cup 2022 Conspiracy!

Mendy seemed to deal with his first injury lay off in a way buoyed by his infectious personality. He became a social media cheerleader for the side and provided some welcome light relief to the pressure title winning sides can face. After his return he even looked to be back to his best and for good measure even won a World Cup.

This season started with great promise but the spectre of injury returned. This time though it was coupled with some off field behaviour which became less tolerated by the club. This involved amongst other things a driving conviction. The sheen began to come off Mendy and Guardiola even hinted at problems behind the scenes – there was talk of late arrivals at training and a variety of club fines being levied. Guardiola suggested the player should concentrate more on recovery and less on social media.

Indeed Mendy seemed to be following his manager’s suggestion. His social media pages dwindled to record low numbers of posts. Stories about behaviour also started to dry up. Given his absence from the first team and social media, for the fans Mendy disappeared.

I can hardly begin to imagine the determination Mendy has needed this time to come through this second knee injury. The focus and commitment needed must be legendary. This time he also needs to adjust. The way he runs, the way he moves all needs to be considered to reduce the stress upon his injuries. But this time much of his recovery has been silent. The exile from social media has left him without regular support and interaction from fans and has left Manchester City without their biggest cheerleader – probably in the minutes we needed it most.

But in the last few days there would appear to have been a return to social media which should anticipate a welcome return to the pitch. Mendy has been in Barcelona at the knee clinic of Dr Cugat but jokingly stated on social media he was in Hong Kong. Journalists at Pep Guardiola’s Press Conference on Friday quizzed him about it and Pep was amused but emphatic that Mendy had not been given permission to travel so far.

At this point one could only guess the frantic phone calls which were being made by the Club to confirm his whereabouts. Mendy did not help matters then by posting a picture of him looking at an atlas deciding where to go next. His team mates also got in the action using the twitter hashtag of #wheresMendy. Kyle Walker mocked up a picture of a ‘Wheres Wally’ book with the cover changed to read ‘Wheres Mendy’? Mendy himself tweeted a picture of an airport and a caption suggesting he was in Dubai, despite it clearly being Manchester Airport.

Kyle Walker concluded the banter this morning by capturing an image of Mendy in the City dressing room at training. Of course what all of this confirmed is that Mendy seems to be back in more ways than one. He is back on social media and it is good to see his humour is intact despite the slog he has had with injury and recovery. He also seems to be nearing a return to action with the first team which will be fantastic as we approach the business end of the season.

If we assume Mendy will gradually acclimatise to our side in the next month then he should be at his best in time for Champions League, FA Cup and Premier League title run in. As a serial winner he will help get our team over the line and Mendy will hopefully have the opportunity to add to his already ridiculous collection of medals.