Top facts about Ferland Mendy, the Speed Dribbler

On 12 June 2019,

signed for La Liga club

on a six-year contract for an initial fee of €48 million, potentially rising to €53 million with add-ons.

The announcement of the transfer of the French national team left back appeared on El Real’s official social media. Real Madrid bring in the fifth player on the 2019 summer exchange. Mendy came after Rodrygo, Eder Militao, Luka Jovic, and Eden Hazard.

From 2017 to 2019, Mendy was a member of another French club, Lyon, before joining Real Madrid in 2019. Mendy was a member of the Real Madrid squad that won the

and Supercopa de Espana in 2019-20. At the youth level, he did not appear for the France football team. In November 2018, he made his senior international debut versus Uruguay.

Mendy was a graduate of the Le Havre academy, just like

. He joined when he was 18 or in 2013. From there, Mendy advanced his career by joining Lyon in 2017.

Although now known as a wing defender, in fact Mendy is a former striker. He started the journey as an attacker when studying at Ecquevilly EFC but transformed into a left back after joining the Paris Saint-Germain academy in 2004.

Top facts about Ferland Mendy, one of the best current left backs:

The French left back began his professional football career in 2013 at French club Le Havre, after playing youth soccer at several teams. Here we take a look at some important facts about Ferland Mendy.

Ferland Mendy early life

Ferland Mendy was born on June 8, 1995, in the village of Meulan-en-Yvelines, in north-central France, to African parents.

Ferland Mendy’s age

is 25. His hometown is close to that of Abdoulaye Doucoure, another French international, but not to that of

, whom many fans believe is his brother or a family member.

Please bear in mind that Ferland Mendy is a cousin of

goalkeeper

. Speaking about Ferland Mendy’s childhood, it should be mentiond that Ferland came from a low-income household. You could easily infer that his parents are of African descent based on his appearance, and you would be right.

His mother origins from Guinea (West Africa), whereas his father is from Senegal, as per reports.

Ferland Mendy's parents

may have been former refugees who left their African homelands, lived in France, met, began a relationship, and gave birth to him.

Another unverified article stated that Ferland Mendy's father died when he was a boy, left his mother and him to fend for themselves with little money.

The youngest of three brothers and four sisters, Ferland grew up in a bad part of town. When he was younger, he had no toys or games, just a football or something that could be transformed into the form of a soccer ball.

More importantly, emptiness left him as he saw football right in front of him. Mendy was initially suspended by his mother due to his excessive football playing. Fortunately, she learned later that playing football was her son's fate.

Marc Gomis, Ferland Mendy's cousin, once described how Mendy was as a child. “He already had football inside him,” he said. “He was tiny, but he was still strong.”

Mendy used to yell "Speed, Speed" as he raced away from defenders while playing as a kid, according to his childhood friend Mangane Yaya.

An important fact about Ferland Mendy’s early life is that his only ambition as a teenager was to play professional football. Anyone who knew him back then could see it in his eyes because he was so determined and hungry. As a result of his tenacity, he was invited to participate in tests.

Mendy's enthusiasm for football led to him passing trials and enrolling at Ecquevilly EFC, a local club that enabled him to highlight his skill and lay the groundwork for his future career.

He began his career as a striker due to his pace. He made an immediate impact with the team, which drew the attention of

.

A fact about

Ferland Mendy’s childhood

is that he was admitted into a Paris Saint-Germain Academy when he was nine years old, in the year 2004. His coach converted him to a left-back when he was at the club.

Ferland Mendy personal life

Following his move to Real Madrid, football fans have started to inquire about Ferland Mendy's personal life. Mendy is a private person who prefers to keep his personal life confidential. As a result, it's unclear whether he has a partner, children, or even a girlfriend.

Since he is always on the field, practicing, or competing in tournaments, the athlete most often does not have time to develop connections.

However, there is a possible secret romance for Ferland at the time of publication. It's a romance that stays out of the spotlight because his relationship is very private and potentially drama-free.

A notable fact about

Ferland Mendy’s personal life

is that he is no exception to the rule that most soccer players adore their pets. Even if there is a saying that there is no loyalty left in the current game, it certainly does not apply to Ferland Mendy's friendship with his pet dolphine.

Ferland Mendy professional career

Ferland Mendy's progression to Real Madrid is pretty remarkable, given that at the age of 15 a hip operation left him in a wheelchair and fearing for his ability to play again.

He recovered enough to play with Le Havre's academy before signing a five-year deal with French

side

in 2017. Two years later he was on the move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, where he won the title last season.

So far he has won six caps for France after turning down an offer from Senegal coach, Aliou Cisse, to play for the Teranga Lions.

Ferland Mendy club career

In 2002, Ferland Mendy began playing football in Ecquevilly (Yvelines). In 2004, he joined the Paris Saint-Germain youth squads. Mendy entered the pre-training center in 2008, but was unable to attend the training center due to a hip injury that held him out for seven months.

An important

fact about Ferland Mendy

professional club career is that at the age of nine, he joined PSG's youth system, he was trained by Yves Gergaud, who recalls him as a "joie de vivre" youngster. Mendy began his career as a forward, mostly playing on the left wing with James Lea Siliki (now a Rennes midfielder) at left back.

"When it came to his ball control, the first thing I found was his skill and interaction with the ball," Gergaud said in an interview. "Because of his technique and pace, he was able to easily defeat opponents. He was lightning fast."

After the rehabilitation from injury, he regained his place in the club's youth teams until 2012, but because he wanted to play in a team in a major league, he left there.

The team appeared to be at a failure to figure out what to do with him. He chose to leave at the age of 17 and joined local amateur side FC Mantois 78. PSG "should've shown a bit more bit more confidence in him," Gergaud believes.

Arrived at the FC Mantois 78 club in 2012 in order to have more visibility, Ferland Mendy played all season with the under-19s in the Honorary Division. He also did a week of training at En avant Guingamp (Côtes-d'Armor) and Le Havre (Seine-Maritime).

Le Havre AC

Ferland Mendy convinced

to sign him in June 2013, by the quality of training. He made his debut with the reserve team in the French Amateur Championship 2 under the orders of Johann Louvel.

Mendy expended his first season in Louvel's reserve squad on the Normandy coast of France. His physical speed and power and attacking impulses stood out as they always had, but his managers had to work hard to instill in him the defensive discipline needed in professional football.

Louvel, manager of the academy of the club at that time, said in an interview, "Everyone takes their own tale with them." "He was told that soccer was over for him when he was 15, 16, so having a second shot at Le Havre was a blessing; it was an exceptional opportunity for him, and he came full of energy."

On the April 24, 2015, he appeared in his first game. After having quietly climbed the ranks in the reserve team, he was established by Thierry Goudet following a suspension by Jérôme Mombris against Football Club Sochaux-Montbéliard.

"When he ended up going forward, he was quite efficient, and he had a strong inclination to assault," Louvel said, "but there was a lot of defensive work to do with him: analytical defensive work as well as strategic work." "We also had to fixate him because he'd start appearing all over the field of play; as time went on, he evolved, but he never lost his primary qualities of heading forward and playing with creativity."

Benjamin Mendy, like his young namesake, went through the youth system in Le Havre and left for Marseille in July 2013. Louvel couldn't help but notice the similarities between the two as buccaneering left-backs and mischief-makers in the locker room. He described them as "two bon vivants" who "play with a grin, are cheerful, and love football."

The following season (2015-2016) he played 12 games, enough for Bob Bradley to leave him in charge of the left flank for the following season. After the departure of

in the summer of 2016, Ferland Mendy took the reins on the left side of the Le Havre defense.

A

fact about Ferland Mendy

career is that his offensive qualities also stood out when playing. Indeed, he punctuated his performances with ball retrievals and quality assists, distilling five assists and scoring two goals. His ball picks, dribbling and crosses made him the main left side of the team for the French Ligue 2 football championship in the 2016-2017 season.

Followed by many clubs including Paris Saint-Germain, Atlético de Madrid and

, he decided to leave the club but preferred to stay in France and taste Ligue 1.

Olympique Lyonnais

On the June 29, 2017, he joined the Olympique Lyonnais for a five-year deal. He chose number 22. The transfer amount was five million euros, plus a million bonus.

He missed the start of the league with an ankle injury in a pre-season game against Inter Milan. But he was making a noticeable return to the team. Mendy started against

in a goalless draw, he was rarely left out of the main eleven players list of Bruno Génésio.

An important fact about Ferland Mendy’s OL career is that he showed his offensive qualities when he was playing in the left back. Against

, in a 3-3 draw, he hit the post, which allowed

to score. In Angers, one of his strikes was repelled by the goalkeeper which allowed Memphis Depay to score the goal of 3-1 (final score 3-3).

On October 13, against the reigning French champion, AS Monaco, he delivered an assist to Nabil Fekir again, allowing the latter to open the scoring. The match would see the Gones 3-2 victory.

His excellent performances caught the eye of Didier Deschamps, coach of the

, who offered him an invitation at the end of the month of October 2017, but he was not in the final list. During the second half of the season, due to his good performance and also to a slight altercation between Fernando Marçal and Bruno Génésio, he became an irremovable holder of the left back.

He notably made two assists (for Maxwel Cornet and Bertrand Traoré) against ESTAC Troyes. His high-flying performances allowed him to be elected best left-back in Ligue 1 by his peers at the UNFP Trophies. He began the 2018-2019 season as the main left back defender of the Ligue 1 side.

Mendy had a very good first part of the season with his club, particularly in the Champions League and a promising start in the national team, it was notably announced that he was being followed by several major European clubs.

Real Madrid

On the June 12 2019, Ferland Mendy was signed by Real Madrid CF. The French international signed a six-year contract with the club from the Spanish capital. The cost of the transfer amounted €48m + €5m bonus.

Mendy was incredibly proud of his transfer: "When I heard that Real wanted me, I couldn't believe it at first," said the fullback. 'This really is the biggest club in the world, so it's great that I was able to sign here. I am here to learn, to play as many matches as possible and to give the maximum for the club and the fans. Real can give me a lot, but I also hope to give Real a lot. '

"When I got here, I was a little nervous, but now I'm getting used to the idea of ​​being a Real Madrid player," Mendy continued. 'When I was fifteen, I was in a wheelchair and spent six or seven months in the hospital to learn to walk again. And now I'm with Real Madrid. It's really unbelievable that I'm here now. ‘Mendy has signed with Real until mid-2025.

A fact about Ferland Mendy’s Real Madrid career is that he was particularly appreciated for his presence during the defensive phases, which facilitated his adaptation in the Merengue workforce.

Observers noted that he greatly relieved

, who was responsible to cover his area as well as left side of the defensive line. Thus, the defensive performance of the Spanish captain was more effective when Mendy was aligned to his left.

Evidenced by this astounding result for the Merengue club, during the 2019-2020 season, Real Madrid had the best defense in the Spanish league. He scored his first goal for Madrid on July 13, 2020.

On Thursday 25 February 2021, Mendy distinguished himself by scoring his first goal in the Champions League against Atalanta Bergamo, scoring the only goal of the match and being considered the architect of the success in Italy, and being the player having caused the fault of

which cost him a red card, and standing out during this match by his ardor and the precision of his passes.

Ferland Mendy international career

Possessing dual Franco-Senegalese nationality, Ferland Mendy had never played or been summoned to the French youth team.

A

fact about Ferland Mendy

is that on the November 12, 2018, he was summoned for the first time to the French team by Didier Deschamps following the injury of Benjamin Mendy and

. He marked his debut on November 20, 2018, against Uruguay. He played the entire meeting and achieved a good score.

Once the ball came to him on the hosts' left flank, France was cruising to a 1-0 win against

in a friendly game at Stade de France.

The ex-Lyon left-back was having his international debut and had not put a foot wrong up to that stage. He had spent the game gaily running down the left flank, frequently coming inside onto his right foot and looking to connect up with France's attackers, showing huge ability on the ball. He already had the appearance of a professional footballer.

Mendy used a Cruyff switch to flip the ball back across his own byline after being pinned against the left sidelines by Uruguay midfielder

.

Rami chose to back-heel the ball to goalkeeper

, who was compelled to sprint through his six-yard box to clear the threat, inspired by the youngster's geniality and apparently unconcerned by the existence of a Uruguayan intruder waiting behind him. It was a hit with the crowd inside the stadium. Didier Deschamps, on the other hand, did not.

Following the game, France's manager chastised his two defenders for taking needless risks when the game was still in doubt (partly absolving Mendy of blame on account of his youth). The debutant, on the other hand, was unapologetic.

Mendy told L'Equipe the following month, "People have already informed me that, also at Le Havre in Ligue 2. People warned me that if I dribbled in defense, I'd pay the price. I haven't been asked to pay for it yet, so I'll keep doing it. If it doesn't work one day, I'll pay the price."

Ferland Mendy collected the best score on the French side the next day in the daily L'Équipe (7/10), tied with his teammate in Lyon

.

An important fact about Ferland Mendy’s international career is that on May 21, 2019, he was retained in the list of invited players by coach Didier Deschamps for the friendly match against

and the Euro 2020 qualifying matches against Turkey and Andorra.

Ferland Mendy injury and rehabilitation

Mendy's carefree attitude is perhaps understandable considering what he went through during his early years as a player.

He acquired a kind of arthritis in one of his hips when he was 14 and a part of the youth system at Paris Saint-Germain. Doctors informed him that his fantasies of becoming a professional football player were over, and that he might never wander afterwards.

After months of recovery, Mendy set out to defy the odds, first playing amateur soccer, then moving into the professional game with Le Havre, and then winning a jump to French contenders Lyon and then La Liga giants Real Madrid.

He said in an interview, "I've really been comfortable and laid-back." "However, with all that has happened, I have realized that you must make the most of your life and do the stuff you enjoy."

Gergaud could call on potential PSG centre-back Presnel Kimpembe, future Lyon forward Moussa Dembele, and upcoming

attacker Kingsley Coman in addition to Mendy and Lea Siliki. It was a generation that was brimming with creativity. Mendy's path strayed away from the grass fields of PSG's Camp des Loges training facility and toward the healthcare advisory accommodations when he turned 14.

A fact about Ferland Mendy is that he lived 3 months in the Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital in central Paris with his leg in plaster before beginning a six-month recovery program at the Med surg and Re-education Clinic in Bullion, southern part of Paris.

In an interview, he said, "I was capable of taking off my brace at Bullion, but I couldn't move for a long time." "I was in a wheelchair for a while, then a carriage, and they gradually tried to teach me how to wander once more, stepwise."

Mendy had to remind himself how to practice soccer again after relearning how to walk: how to run, how to handle the ball, and how to conduct passes. The pain in his hip would take two years to completely subside.

Mendy played a campaign with FC Mantois' under-19 team, and it was there that he persuaded himself and others that he already had what it takes to compete seriously.

FC Mantois managing director Robert Mendy (no relation) said in an interview, "He was confident in himself, his skills, and his level." "Some might call it vanity, but he was adamant about doing what he needed."

Connections at FC Mantois alerted Johann Louvel, who was then in control of Le Havre's youth academy, to Mendy's abilities. Since seeing the youth participate in a trial in the spring of 2013, Louvel was convinced of his success and took him to Le Havre.

He had never visited the national training centre at Clairefontaine as a teenager since he was uncapped, but he was acquainted with the area in the hospital in Bullion where he had endured his long months of recovery period as a teenager is just a 15-minute drive away.

Mendy could hardly have imagined, as he laid in his hospital bed at the age of 14, that he would be preparing for service as an international player nine years later, on the other side of the Woods of Rambouillet.

Ferland Mendy social media

Regarding

Ferland Mendy social media

, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

) with 1.7 million followers. It's evident from the young man's Instagram page that he is fully dedicated to his career and responsibilities. Except for a few pictures of his buddies and cousin, the majority of the photos show him on the field. And that’s why it comes to his match results, Mendy has shown a lot of promise.

He also has a Twitter account (

) with more than 240K followers. He rarely posts new stuff on his Twitter page.

Ferland Mendy body measurements

Speaking about

Ferland Mendy body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the French star is 5.9 ft. (180 cm) tall, weighing 160.93 lbs. (73 kg).

Ferland Mendy net worth and salary

Ferland Mendy is undoubtedly one of the most valuable left-backs in history, having cost 48 million euros plus 5 million euros in add-ons. It is estimated that

Ferland Mendy’s net worth

is 60 million dollars and his annual salary is approximately 11 million dollars.

Ferland Mendy makes a living as a professional footballer. Contracts, salaries, and endorsements are how he makes money. This, however, does not translate into a luxurious lifestyle characterized by a few spectacular cars, attractive women, and booze. Ferland simply enjoys spending time with his cousin and friend.

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